


001

by madmoriarty



Series: 001 [1]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Fanfic, Fanfiction, Fiction, Gen, Hawkins - Freeform, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, Thriller, netflix, stranger things, upside down - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2020-06-27 23:27:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 41
Words: 66,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19799974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madmoriarty/pseuds/madmoriarty
Summary: 1970: Sarah Hopper is pronounced dead. Or so her parents are told. She's secreted away to Hawkins Laboratory by Dr. Brenner to enhance her powers, making her the first in a long line of supernatural experiments.1985: A strange girl arrives in Hawkins with no memory of her past. The only clue she has is a small tattoo on her left wrist: 001. Together, Mike, Eleven, Will, Lucas, Dustin, and Max must find a way to help her figure out who she is...and to stop the emerging danger in her wake.[All fictional characters and places belong to Stranger Things]





	1. Welcome to Hawkins

**JUNE 5, 1970**

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Everything was moving so slowly. All he could see was a blur of white coats as a crowd of doctors swarmed around the hospital bed like a hive of bees. He watched their mouths move but he couldn't hear a word. All he could hear was...

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Like a wave, they parted, revealing to him a glimpse of his daughter; still, lifeless. Her closed lids were sunken and her pale skin clung to her bones. It was still a terrible surprise every time he saw her like this.

Tears poured down his cheeks. He didn't notice. His heart was racing. He didn't notice. He could hardly breathe. _He didn't notice._

All he noticed was her. And that incessant beeping.

_Beep. Beep. Beeeeeeeeeeep._

The flurry of doctors began to move frantically, blocking his daughter from his view again. He tried to push towards them to see her but he felt something holding him back and looked down to see the tear-stained face of his wife. Her eyes hollowed his body out, devouring all thought and feeling until the only thing he knew was emptiness. And what that last beep meant.

"I'm sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Hopper." One of the doctors approached him and his wife. "She's gone. Sarah is dead."

~~~

**JANUARY 7, 1985**

"Oh, come on!" Dustin shouted and threw his hands up in the air. "I was this close!"

He angrily slammed his hands against the the buttons on the Tron arcade game, receiving a sharp look from Keith, who had his feet up on the prize counter.

"Sorry, Keith," Dustin apologized sheepishly, flashing his toothless smile. Keith rolled his eyes until they returned back to the comic he was reading.

"Give me a try," Lucas said, shoving Dustin aside and grabbing the joystick.

"Nuh-uh," Dustin argued, shoving him back. "I've been working at this game all day, go find another one."

"Like what?" Lucas pushed his body against Dustin, trying to maintain his hold on the joystick.

"I don't know, go play Frogger or something!" Dustin wrestled Lucas for control of the joystick and they were soon entangled in a mess of arms and legs.

"Absolutely not, that game is for little kids!"

They both felt an arm on their shoulder, and within moments they were pulled apart and yanked away from the game.

"Right now you're both acting like little kids," Max snapped, crossing her arms and blocking them from the arcade game. The two were stunned silent. "I think it's my turn to play."

Max dropped a quarter into the machine and began jabbing at buttons and moving the joystick at impressive speeds. After a shared glance, Dustin and Lucas resolved to set aside their differences for the sake of watching Max play.

Watching from the corner booth was Will, who sat with his back to the wall and his knees tucked into his chest. Will sighed as he looked across the booth to the rest of their party: Mike and Eleven locking lips. Between the squabbling and the kissing, he didn't know which was worse.

He had been trying to convince his friends to play his new D&D campaign all day, but they couldn't seem to agree on what to do anymore after everyone had started "coupling up". He had only agreed to come to the arcade because at least Mike, Eleven, Max, and Lucas would have to act somewhat normal. Or at least that's what he had thought.

A tingling sensation crept across the back of Will's neck and he anxiously wiped it away. That feeling only came when there was something bad about to happen, and there couldn't be something bad about to happen. They had closed the gate. The Upside Down was locked away. He was just cold, or something...

~~~

She stood atop the hill, staring down at the quaint town before her. The dim lights of various houses and businesses lit up the darkness around her, even from far away. The sign to her right read "Welcome to Hawkins". She didn't know where she was or why she was there, but something deep down told her to keep walking.

A crackle of blue electricity ran between her fingers like a web, illuminating the tattoo on her left wrist: _001_.


	2. The Girl with Electric Hands

**JUNE 5, 1970**

The echo of wheels rolling down the long hallway that stretched before him alerted the man that everything had gone accordingly. He stood in the darkness of a forgotten and sealed off area of the hospital, a broken light above him blinking like Morse code.

_Blink, bliiiiink, blink. Blink, blink, bliiiiink. Bliiiiink, blink._

"It worked?" he asked the newcomer, who nodded in response.

The brief flickers of the light illuminated the silver slab that the newcomer was pushing. The slab was covered with a drab sheet that outlined the shape of a small body.

"The parents bought it?"

"None the wiser," the newcomer responded. He pulled the sheet aside to reveal a 7 year-old girl in a hospital gown. Her head was shaved and her eyes were shut. A tag tied around her big toe read "Hopper, Sarah".

"Take her to the lab," the man smiled, looking down upon the subject.

"Yes, Dr. Brenner."

~~~

****

**JANUARY 7, 1985**

"I can't believe you beat it!" Dustin exclaimed, jumping up and down as Max's initials flashed across the screen at the top of the high score board.

"I know, I'm the best," Max smiled triumphantly, blowing on her hands and shaking them out like they were weapons.

"And that's why you're my girlfriend," Lucas smiled slyly, slipping his arm around Max's shoulders in an attempt to share the glory. Max just rolled her eyes and shoved him away.

Fed up, Will abruptly stood from the booth and started walking towards the exit. He was bored and he was sick of all the kissing and hand-holding and flirting. He just wanted things to go back to how they were before. Back when everyone wasn't so stupid and gross.

"Hey, Will!" Mike shouted as he watched Will walk away. "Where are you going?"

Will stopped just long enough to turn around and face his friends, who were now all staring at him expectantly. "Home," Will exclaimed in frustration, swiveling back towards the exit and storming off in a huff.

"What's his problem?" Lucas asked.

"I don't know," Mike sighed, pushing himself out of the booth and rushing towards the exit as he watched the door swing shut after Will. "Will, wait up!"

Mike nearly ran into Will as he shoved through the glass arcade doors. Will didn't even seem to notice. "Will! Are you okay? I'm sorry about the kissing and stuff..."

Will stood rooted in the same spot, staring ahead with his jaw hanging open. He found it impossible to form a verbal response, so instead he slowly raised his arm and pointed.

"Will?" Mike asked, following Will's finger. Once his eyes landed upon the source, Mike's face became a mirror-copy of Will's.

Walking straight towards them was a 20-something year old girl in a dusty black leather jacket with ripped jeans and an equally shredded Rolling Stones t-shirt. She had shaggy short blonde hair with bright red tips, making her head look like it was ablaze in the dark of the night. Any visible skin was covered in ash, scrapes, and dried blood.

Mike and Will found themselves stuck in the intense gaze of her icy blue eyes, but what was most surprising of all was the matching lightning that was shooting from her hands.

"What are you guys—" Dustin began to ask as he joined Mike and Will outside but halted when he saw the girl. Max, Eleven, and Lucas gathered around them, frozen in the same force field of the girl's glare.

Time felt like it was standing as still as they were while they waited for her to reach them. They were scared but they didn't run; both because they didn't want to and because they couldn't.

The girl stopped a few feet before them, surveying each of their faces until she landed on one: Eleven. She looked deep into Eleven's eyes, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to find her voice.

"Help," the girl whispered, before dropping to the ground unconscious.


	3. Strange Sisters

**JUNE 8, 1970**

A sharp gasp brought Sarah back to consciousness, her lungs and heart both pumping like mad. Her small blue eyes took a few minutes to adjust to the blinding lights surrounding her, but even when everything finally became clear she still had no idea where she was. The room contained nothing but herself and four white walls.

"Mommy?" Sarah's little voice cried out into the emptiness. "Daddy?"

No response.

She could feel a cold, hard surface against the backs of her arms and legs. She wanted to leave, she wanted to get out of that scary place and see her parents, but she was unable to move. She began to whimper and cry as she pulled against the restraints holding her down. She was in trouble. Big trouble.

She stopped crying when she heard a man's voice coming from down the hallway. _Daddy?_ She tried to quiet her heavy breathing so that she could hear better. The voice got closer and closer until it was right outside her door. She waited anxiously as the doorknob jiggled and a man in a white coat entered the room. This wasn't her dad.

He was accompanied by two other men, who both wore frowns on their faces and guns on their hips. They didn't look friendly. But the man in the white coat did. As he walked closer to her the smile on his face grew larger.

"You're awake," he said. His voice was as soothing as his smile, but something about him just wasn't right.

"Where am I?" Sarah whimpered, squirming against the restraints. "Where are my mom and dad?"

"Shhh..." The man bent over the table and put a finger to his lips in an attempt to calm her down. This only unnerved her more. "You're okay."

"Who...who are you?" Sarah tried to ask as her bottom lip quivered in fear.

"Call me Papa," the man smiled.

~~~

**JANUARY 7, 1985**

"Is she...dead?" Lucas asked, peering over the unconscious girl laying at their feet. The group had formed a circle around her, studying her in confusion and fear. Other than the fact that electricity had been generating from her hands moments ago, something felt off about her. _Otherworldly._

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god..." Dustin walked in anxious circles, his fingers entangled in his nest of curly hair. "What the shit do we do?"

"First we need to calm down!" Mike shouted, grabbing Dustin's shoulders and shaking him until he stopped pacing. "Somebody check her pulse."

"No way, not me," Lucas shook his head vigorously. "What if her hands light up again?"

"Not dead," Eleven piped up, kneeling beside the girl to get a better look. Something about her seemed...familiar...She lifted her left wrist to feel for a pulse, and nearly dropped it in surprise when she pulled back the sleeve.

A tiny black tattoo similar to her own was etched into the girl's pale skin. Eleven pulled back her own sleeve and pressed her wrist against the girl's to compare the two tattoos: _011, 001_.

"Holy shit," Max said, drawing the boys's attention from their squabbling to the new discovery.

"El..." Mike began, finding it hard to speak. "She's..."

"My sister," Eleven finished for him, gingerly setting the girl's wrist back on the ground.

"What are we going to do with her?" Max asked, kneeling beside Eleven and putting a hand on her shoulder. "We can't just leave her here. Should we take her to the hospital?"

"Too risky," Mike argued, shaking his head. "We can't let _them_ find out about her."

"You think they're still out there?" Dustin asked, a shiver running down his spine. His feet were itching to pace again, but a sharp look from Mike made them stay still.

"Maybe she could stay in Mike's basement, like El did," Lucas offered.

"I could talk to my mom and Jonathan about her staying with us," Will volunteered.

"No," Eleven said determinedly, turning down their ideas. A small smile rose on her lips. "Home, with me."


	4. Home Sweet Hopper

**JUNE 11, 1970**

"Let's begin." Dr. Brenner smiled at Sarah from across the metal table.

Sarah gulped and began to shake as a man behind her fastened a strange helmet onto her head. Sensors suctioned onto her head like stickers and a strange buzzing noise began to emit in her ears.

"I need you to focus," Dr. Brenner said, trying to catch the little girl's eyes as they darted around the room anxiously. "Can you do that for me?"

"Can I see my mommy and daddy?" Sarah asked, her eyes finally settling back on his.

"If you help us we can help you," Dr. Brenner replied. Sarah gave him a small nod and he smiled warmly. "Now, I need you to look at that wall and envision this picture, okay?"

Sarah studied the picture that Dr. Brenner slipped before her. It was a room with lots of buttons and metal machines. She had never seen it before but she didn't care because she would do whatever it took to see her parents again. "Okay."

"Okay..." Dr. Brenner led on, waving his hand in expectation.

"Okay...Papa." Sarah squirmed in her seat. She didn't like calling him that. He wasn't her father.

"Good," Dr. Brenner smiled again. "Proceed."

Sarah turned to face the wall to her left and tried to pick a spot on the wall to focus. She found a small smudge almost directly before her and concentrated all her might on it. She stared and stared until her eyes strained and began to pulse in pain. They felt like they were going to pop out of her head.

Sarah turned away when she could no longer handle the pain, rubbing her eyes vigorously. She looked to Dr. Brenner for help, but the unrelenting look on his face told her that she would not receive any until she did as she was told.

Tears welling in her eyes, she turned back to the smudge with the hope of seeing her mom and dad again fueling her. The longer she stared at it, the more it started to move and change. It was starting to take the shape of something familiar. It was starting to take the shape of the room in the picture.

Dr. Brenner gasped in astonishment as a small whirling circle began to appear in front of the wall. It slowly grew larger and larger, revealing new details with every centimeter. Within seconds it had grown to the size of a softball.

"Incredible," Dr. Brenner whispered. He started to move towards the circle that Sarah was creating with her mind, but it snapped shut just as he reached it. A loud thud signified that Sarah's body had dropped to the ground. His hand remained stretched out towards the spot where the portal had been.

Two guards began to move towards Sarah's limp body on the floor, but Dr. Brenner waved them aside as he knelt beside her himself. He lifted her weak semi-conscious body onto his lap, her head lolling around and falling onto his chest. A bright streak of blood dripped from her nose and splashed on the ground.

~~~

**JANUARY 7, 1985**

Hopper sat in his recliner, a bucket of popcorn glued to his hip. His eyes took turns looking between the clock and the TV screen before him.

_"Oh, Richard! Where are you, my darling?"_

_"Look away, Rebecca! You cannot see me like this! I'm hideous, I'm a monster!"_

_"Please, Richard! I've missed you terribly!"_

_"Run...RUN AWAY!"_

Hopper nearly jumped out of his chair as the cabin door swung wide open and slammed against the wall. The abrupt movement sent the popcorn bucket flying and sprayed kernels all across the floor.

"El...?" Hopper asked cautiously, standing up slowly and resting his hand on his gun. The door remained open, despite the fact that nobody was holding it. Hopper took a few careful steps towards the doorway to get a better look...

...Right as Eleven came bursting through the door in a fit of grunts.

"Jesus!" Hopper shouted, holding his hand over his heart and feeling the quickened pulse under his fingertips. That stupid corny horror flick had put him on edge. "Where have you been? It's ten o'clock, you don't call—"

Hopper was cut short when he watched two other people accompany Eleven through the door like a train: Mike and a mysterious girl who looked like she'd been through hell, back, and then through hell again. Eleven and Mike carried her in, her arms draped around their shoulders and her feet sliding on the floor.

"What the hell is going on?" Hopper asked. "Who is that?"

Eleven and Mike struggled to bring the girl over to the couch and lay her unconscious body across it. It was a good thing she was still asleep because her head hit the arm rest on the way down. They looked between the girl and each other before looking to Hopper.

"Sister," Eleven said, holding up the girl's wrist for Hopper to see. Hopper stepped closer and nearly did a double take when he saw the tattoo.

"What...How..." Hopper began, unsure of what he even wanted to ask. There were so many thoughts racing through his mind.

"We don't know," Mike answered this time. "She found us."

"How about you run on home, kid," Hopper said, finally finding and grabbing on to one of the many racing thoughts. "It's getting late."

"But--" Mike started. He wanted to stay with Eleven and the girl. He wanted to figure out the new mystery.

Hopper waved a hand to cut him off. "We've got this handled."

Mike sighed in defeat, giving Eleven a small wave before he walked out the door.

"Alright, what's going on?" Hopper asked once he was sure the door was securely shut and locked. He liked Mike, but as a cop he knew it was best to interrogate one person at a time. Also he was mad that Eleven hadn't given him a head's up about staying out past curfew and aimed to address it without an audience.

"She needs a place to stay," Eleven answered. "Here."

"Here?" Hopper asked in disbelief. They had no idea who this girl was. That tattoo meant that she had some sort of strange supernatural abilities. How did they know she wouldn't use those powers against them? "Why here?"

"Please," Eleven begged, looking up into Hopper's eyes. This girl was family. She wanted to find out more about her.

Hopper quickly looked away and rubbed the back of his head. She always got him with those puppy dog eyes. "What's her name?" Hopper sighed after a few moments of contemplation.

"Don't know."

"Okay..." Hopper said. "How long will she be staying?"

"Don't know."

"Is she okay?" Hopper asked. "She looks pretty beat up..." Shallow breaths rose and fell from the girl's chest. She didn't look great but she didn't look dead. The cuts and scrapes decorating her skin looked old and mostly healed, but the sight of ash and dried blood was worrying. What had happened to her?

"Don't know." Eleven's answer was once again the same.

"Fine," Hopper caved. "She can stay until we figure something out. But if anything, and I mean anything, happens she's outta here. Kapeesh?"

Eleven nodded her head excitedly, looking down at her new sister with a huge smile. Seeing how happy his daughter was, Hopper couldn't help but smile as well, but the smile faded quickly when he remembered what time it was.

"Now off to bed," Hopper instructed. "I'm still mad at you for staying out so late."

Eleven rolled her eyes but the smile remained as she trudged to her room. The same thought continued to play itself over and over in her head: _Sister_.

Hopper glanced down at their new guest out of curiosity. Unconscious she looked innocent enough, but he couldn't seem to shake a new feeling that emerged when he looked at her: _Danger_.


	5. One

**JULY 11, 1970**

"Again," Dr. Brenner instructed.

Sarah hesitated before focusing on the smudge. She concentrated hard and did exactly what she had done the last 17 times, but a portal didn't appear.

"Again."

Sarah looked to Dr. Brenner, her eyes pleading with him to let her rest. They had been doing this every day since she had awoken in this nightmare place. 

" _Again._ " Dr. Brenner leaned forward so that his dark eyes were only inches from her own. She could see a terrified little girl in the reflection. Was that her? 

"Please Papa," she cried.

Dr. Brenner continued to stare into her eyes as he motioned for the guards at the door. Sarah began to breathe harder as they walked towards her. She tried one last time to beg for mercy, but the two sets of rough hands that latched onto her arms gave her Dr. Brenner's answer.

"No! No! NO!" Sarah kicked and screamed as the guards lifted her from the chair and carried her to the hallway. Dr. Brenner didn't move. He didn't even flinch as she was escorted back to her room, crying and flailing the whole way.

"Papa! PAPA!" Sarah shouted. She couldn't think about anything but him. He had to stop this, to save her. He was the only one who could. Everything around her became blurry as she continued to scream for him. 

And then she saw him. Not in the hallway or her cell-like room that they were fast approaching, but in the portal that opened before her. Framed by a whirling circle of light the size of a basketball was Dr. Brenner's surprised face. 

The guards were also shocked, and loosened their grip just enough for Sarah to pull her arm free and reach through the portal for Dr. Brenner. A large tear plummeted down Sarah's cheek as Dr. Brenner put his hand to hers. "Papa," Sarah whispered.

"One," Dr. Brenner smiled.

~~~

**JANUARY 8, 1985**

The girl awoke to the smell and sound of sizzling bacon. The first sight she saw as her eyelids fluttered open were two big brown eyes staring back at her. She nearly hurtled off the couch in surprise.

Eleven's face was inches from hers, a huge smile plastered on her face. "Good morning!" 

"Good...morning..." the girl said, slowly pushing herself off the couch.

"Breakfast?" Hopper asked, venturing into the living room with the pan of bacon. A loud growl from the girl's stomach answered for her.

The three sat together at the cramped table, Hopper and Eleven watching as their guest mowed down her plate. 

"Hungry?" Eleven asked after the girl had begun to pick at the crumbs. The girl nodded vigorously.

"So..." Hopper began, scraping his fork against his plate. "What's your name?"

The girl stopped staring at her plate long enough to look up at Hopper. She studied him for a moment before speaking. "One."

"Your name is One?" Hopper asked. The girl nodded, not caring to elaborate. "Do you have another name? Like a nickname or a name you went by before...well..." Hopper cleared his throat uncomfortably. 

One just stared at him. Her gaze made Hopper feel uncomfortable and he looked away, giving up on getting an answer. “Well, _One,_ it’s nice to meet you. My name is Jim and you’ve already met my daughter, El.”

“Hello,” Eleven smiled as Hopper gestured to her. "Where did you come from?" Eleven asked next. One slowly swallowed her last bite, looking down before she could meet Eleven's eyes. She didn't answer. 

After a few awkward moments of silence, One pushed the plate ahead of her to signify that she was done. "Can I...shower?" she asked hesitantly. 

"Of course," Hopper said, surprised. For some reason he was caught off guard by the normality of the question. Nothing about this situation was normal. But then again, nothing about most of his life was normal; his adopted daughter had superpowers and they were constantly terrorized by monsters from another dimension for Christ's sake.

Hopper directed One towards the bathroom, grabbing her a fresh towel from the cabinet and shutting the door for her. She stood watching him with those unnerving blue eyes as the space between the door got smaller and smaller. What was it about her eyes?

Hopper rejoined Eleven at the table, staring back at the bathroom door every few seconds like it was going to open and reveal an empty room. Like One was a figment of his imagination. The sound of rushing water as the shower turned on reminded him that she was very real.

"So what are we going to do about her?" Hopper asked Eleven, clearing the plates from the table and depositing them in the sink. "It's clear that she's not going to talk to us..."

"She needs time," Eleven answered.

"What do you think happened to her? I mean...other than the experimenting and...stuff." Hopper once again found it difficult to address the terrible things Dr. Brenner had inflicted on Eleven and the other kids he abducted.

"Don't know..." Eleven contemplated. "She was somewhere...else."

"What do you mean, 'somewhere else'?"

"Papa—Dr. Brenner..." Eleven caught herself when she saw Hopper flinch. Old habits. "is gone. But she looks like she was in danger."

"What kind of danger?" Hopper asked, but Eleven didn't get a chance to answer when the water shut off and the bathroom door creaked open. 

The girl standing in the doorway did not look like the girl who had crashed on their couch. Without all the ash and blood, One was a whole new person. Well, almost a new person. Water dripped from One's dyed red tips onto her battered jacket.

"You need new clothes," Hopper pointed out. One looked down at her outfit and frowned. Shreds of her pale skin were visible through the slashes in her shirt and jeans. 

Eleven ran over to the phone, her fingers dialing Max's number. Eleven smiled as she pressed the phone to her ear and listened to the rings. "Shopping!"


	6. We All Scream for Ice Cream

**OCTOBER 12, 1969**

"Roar, I'm coming to get you!" her father shouted, running through through the crisp fall leaves. The high-pitched tinkles of Sarah's laughter hung in the air as she once again eluded his outstretched arms. Her mother watched from nearby, a rosy smile attached to her cheeks.

Sarah's little blonde pigtails bounced with every step as her dad lumbered behind her making a variety of animal-like noises and flailing his arms. With each step he was getting closer and Sarah's laughs were getting louder. 

"It's troll's favorite food! Princess!" her father shouted, finally reaching her. He swung her up into his arms and started to fake chomp on her stomach like he was eating her. 

"No daddy!" Sarah giggled. "No daddy, no!"

"Roasted princess with paprika and gravy!"

Sarah closed her eyes as she got lost in her own happiness and laughter. The warmth of her father holding her and the sound of her mother's laugh beside them made her feel so serene. But then her mother's laughter stopped. And she couldn't feel her father's big, strong arms anymore. 

Sarah opened her eyes and gasped when she found herself in a different place. It looked the same, but it was different. Everything she knew, her neighborhood, the houses, the fences, the lawn ornaments...everything was there, but everything was black and lifeless. Dark ash fell around her, creating a contrast as it collected in her light hair. New sounds began to enter her eardrums: distant roars and screams. But not the ones that her father had been making. 

Her chest heaved in and out, in and out as her eyes darted around the haunted wasteland. She could hear her mom and dad but she couldn't see them. Where were they? Where was she?

"Whoa, hey! You all right?" her father asked. 

"What's going on?" her mother's voice joined.

Sarah tried to look for them, but her body wouldn't move. She blinked her eyes a few times, hoping to reopen them and find the home she knew. But when she did everything was dark. Completely dark. And that was the last thing she remembered.

~~~ 

**JANUARY 8, 1985**

"Come out, let us see!" Max called to One through the dressing room door. After a few moments One stepped out hesitantly, her eyes flickering back and forth between the curious gazes of Max and Eleven, and the ground.

"Yes," Eleven said with a smile. One accepted Eleven's evaluation without saying anything, and continued to stand silently as Eleven ran to the cashier to pay for the new clothes.

The three walked out of the boutique at Starcourt Mall in style: Max brandishing a new floppy tweed hat and sunglasses, Eleven wearing a multi-colored romper, and One showing off an oversized blue pin-striped button-up shirt with black skinny jeans that had intentional holes in them. One also wore the beaten black leather jacket they found her in because she refused to dump it.

"Wait," Max stopped One as they walked towards the food court. She unbuttoned the wrists of One's sleeves and pulled them over the sleeves of her jacket. She stepped back to admire the completed look.

"Bitchin'," Eleven nodded in approval. The phrase prompted a smile to appear in the corner of One's mouth, though she tried to hide it quickly after.

"El!" A shout from across the food court caught their attention, and their heads all turned to see the source: Mike, who was accompanied by Will, Dustin, and Lucas. The two groups met halfway, collapsing onto the nearest table that could fit them all.

"Mike," Eleven smiled, resting a hand on his as he sat down across from her. He smiled back.

"Have you learned anything more?" Mike asked, glancing over to One who sat quietly at the end of the table. She felt Mike's gaze and looked up to meet it, sending his glance downwards.

"Her name is One," Eleven responded. Max nodded along, having been filled in by Eleven prior to reaching Starcourt.

"Anything else?" Mike pressed.

"Geez Mike," Max interrupted. "Why don't you ask her instead of talking about her like she's not even here."

"Sorry," Mike mumbled in embarrassment. He turned to address One, whose icy eyes were staring at him in curiosity, but again found it hard to lock into her line of sight. "Can you...tell us anything about yourself?"

One looked to Eleven and Max, as if to ask them what she should do. The two girls nodded their heads at her in reassurance. She gulped before speaking one word: "Private."

"Private?" Dustin repeated loudly, having barely heard her from the opposite end of the table. The rest of the group immediately began to shush him but he ignored them and continued to speak at a decibel that worried his companions. What if someone overheard? What if _they_ overheard? Dustin considered neither of these thoughts. "What does she mean 'private'? She won't tell us?"

"Or maybe she means that she wants to speak about it _in private,_ " Will spoke up, to which One gave him a grateful look and he returned it. He knew nothing about her, but something gave him the feeling that they were more alike than they knew.

"What about Mike's basement?" Lucas asked. The group contemplated it but were too anxious for answers to travel that far. Even if it wasn't actually that far.

"I've got a place," Dustin smiled, slapping his hands against the tabletop. "Follow me."

~~~

" _Scoops Ahoy?_ " Lucas asked in disbelief, as the group stood before the ice cream parlor.

Dustin rolled his eyes as he entered the store. The group slowly followed after, Lucas taking up the rear with an exasperated wave of his arms.

Dustin stood eagerly at the counter, waiting impatiently for the cashier facing away from them to notice their presence. When Dustin felt like it was taking too long, he began to tap the bell at a million miles a minute.

"Welcome to Scoops Ahoy, be prepared to board the SS Delicious as it sets sail across the sweet, sweet seas of flavor..." the cashier repeated his script boredly as he turned to meet his new customers. The white of his eyes became larger as he realized who he was about to serve.

"Dusty!" Steve Harrington yelled, nearly jumping over the counter in excitement.

"Steve!" Dustin shouted with a smile so big he could barely see. The two stood staring and smiling for a moment before Mike jabbed Dustin's shoulder and he was released from his stupor. "We need your help! You've gotta let us use the passage!"

Steve sighed and stretched his hands out across the counter, leaning forward to look Dustin in the eye when he noticed an unfamiliar face in his peripheral view: One.

"Who is this?" Steve asked flirtatiously, giving One a once-over. Unsure what to think, One frowned and clenched her fists.

"Never gonna work, dip-brain!" Robin's incorporeal voice called from the back. Steve slapped his hand against the corner and turned to give a sharp eye to the divider between them.

"This is One," Eleven answered, drawing Steve's attention back forward.

Steve looked between One and Eleven in confusion until it finally clicked. Numbers for names? "Oh shit." He looked again. " _Oh shit._ "

"How 'bout that passageway, Steve?" Dustin reminded him.

Steve stared at the group for a full minute as he processed things before responding, "Right this way."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *This chapter was edited to be more accurate to the show (7/21/19)


	7. Long Time

**OCTOBER 12, 1969**

_"9-1-1, what's your emergency?"_

_"Help, we need help!"_

_"Sir, what's wrong?"_

_"My daughter...she, she's not responding to us. She's struggling to breathe, I-I don't know what's going on..."_

_"Sir, I'm going to need you to take a few deep breaths and calmly explain the situation."_

_"She...It's like she sees something that we can't see. I-I don't know what. She just keeps saying 'danger', over and over and over...Please, just get somebody out here and help us!"_

_"I understand your frustration, sir, but please try to remain calm...We've got an ambulance en route, please stay on the line while we wait for them to reach you."_

_"..."_

_"Sir?"_

_"..."_

_"Sir? Sir, are you there?"_

_"OH MY GOD--"_

_Click._

The phone line went dead. The man slowly removed the headphones from his ears and set them on the table in front of him. He could hear the faint sounds of frantic voices coming from the headsets of his coworkers beside him. 

He pressed a phone to his ear, the buzzing of the dial tone adding to the cacophony of eavesdropped sounds. There was an exaggerated pause between every number he dialed. He sat still, like a robot, as he waited for the other end to pick up. Finally they did. Heavy, impatient breaths answered him, waiting for his words. 

"Dr. Brenner, I think we've got something."

~~~

**JANUARY 8, 1985**

"Whoa, what is this place?" Mike asked as they stepped through the back door of Scoops Ahoy and into an endless hallway of cement and metal.

"It leads to the movie theater!" Dustin smiled. "Pretty cool, huh? Found it all by myself!"

"Ah hem..." Steve cleared his throat loudly from the door. 

"...and with Steve's help," Dustin added. "Anyways, I figured we could talk here. No one ever uses this so it'll be totally private." Dustin looked to One as he said "private". 

"Does this work?" Mike asked One. She was a little startled as everyone turned to look at her. One stared curiously at Steve who was still lingering in the doorway before deciding whether to speak.

"Yes," she said quietly. "It works." 

The group gathered around One and took a seat on the floor. Steve remained standing, but he shut the door and took a few steps forward so that he could also hear. After his previous involvement with the Demogorgon and demodogs, he figured that this concerned him as well. Plus he was incredibly curious about this new girl. 

"Okay," Mike said once they were all settled and they were sure that nobody else would be joining them. "Start from the beginning."

"I don't remember..." One said, alighting a series of frustrated groans from Mike, Lucas, and Dustin.

"Seriously?" Dustin said, irritated that he had seemingly revealed his secret passage for nothing.

"I don't remember...the beginning," One finished, shutting them up mid-grumble. 

"What do you remember?" Eleven asked after giving the three boys side-eye for interrupting One. They apologized with nervous smiles. 

"A place," One answered. 

"What place?" Max asked. One just shook her head. She didn't know what to call it. "Can you describe it to us?"

"Darkness..." One began to explain. Her mouth quivered and her eyelids twitched as she shut her eyes so that she could better describe it. She always saw it when she closed her eyes. "Ash...Monsters..." The reverberation of roars in her head sent a shiver down her spine and snapped her eyes open. 

Looks and whispers passed around the circle. 

_"It can't be..."_

_"Do you think?"_

_"But the gate was sealed..."_

"This place..." Will's voice rose above the murmurs. "Did it look like here, but different?" The tingling on the back of Will's neck was already giving him the answer but he had to confirm it. One's small nod sent the group careening back in fear, and she looked at each of their faces in confusion. 

"The Upside Down..." Eleven, Max, Mike, Dustin, Will, Lucas, and Steve said collectively. 

"Upside...down?" One asked, the words tasting funny in her mouth. They carried a weight. 

"It's what we call the place you're talking about," Mike explained. "You were there?"

Another small nod. 

"You know of it?" One asked in confusion. She tried to look into their eyes for answers but everybody's glances were shifted downwards. 

"Unfortunately," Mike responded. A subconscious shiver ran through him as flashes of haunting memories appeared uninvited in his mind.

"But how did you get there?" Lucas asked. "Did you go through a rift?" 

"Not exactly," One said, her eyes glancing behind the group at the stale white walls.

"How then? And how did you get out?"

One remained quiet, refusing to answer.

"How long were you there for?" Dustin intervened, seeing that Lucas was getting nowhere. 

"Long time." One's response was met with more murmurs.

_"Impossible!"_

_"She should be dead!"_

_"She's lying!"_

"How did you protect yourself from the demogorgons?" Mike asked, but was met with a blank gaze. She clearly wasn't familiar with their terminology. "Monsters," Mike clarified.

One responded by electrocuting her hands. The group instinctively jumped back. 

"Oh shit!" Steve's cursing was accompanied by the sound of him falling on his ass and scooting back across the linoleum floor. 

The blue light dimmed from her hands after her answer was made clear. 

"But wait..." Max piped up. "How is your hair so short and why is it dyed? Unless—" Max's eyes instantly widened as she leaned forward and whispered the next part: " _Is that blood?_ "

One couldn't help but laugh. The foreign sound bounced off the walls and echoed down the hallway. "Not blood," One reassured her. "I cut and colored it."

She was met with a surrounding look of confusion. "That place..." One continued to explain, trying to recall the term they had used. "...'Upside Down'...is the same as here, just lifeless. There are still hair salons and scissors and hair dye. Old and kind of gross, but there." 

"Whoa..." Mike said in surprise. "I think that's the most you've ever spoken."

"I can speak," One reassured them. "I just didn't have much need to while I was...there."

"Wait, wait..." Dustin said, waving his hands to get everyone's attention again. "If you had enough time and priority for your hair in a dimension of dangerous monsters, exactly how long is a 'long time'?"

"What year is it?" One asked.

Dustin looked around to his group mates in disbelief before answering. "1985."

"Seven years." One replied after some quick math. "I was in the Upside Down for seven years."


	8. Snikwah

**OCTOBER 15, 1969**

"You've got exactly sixty seconds to explain to me why I shouldn't cut your funding, Martin," a squat man in his sixties exclaimed angrily as he burst through the Hawkins Laboratory doors. Dr. Brenner was at his side immediately, trying to keep up with his quick pace. 

"Mr. Munson, we're making great strides..." Dr. Brenner began to explain.

"Six!" Mr. Munson interrupted him, stopping on his heel and turning to look Dr. Brenner in the eyes. "Six kids are dead! It's starting to attract attention!"

"They were all orphans, there was nobody who cared for them," Dr. Brenner replied. 

"Yeah, well, the public is starting to sniff it out. We cannot and _will not_ continue to cover this if it does not yield results!"

"We've found a girl," Dr. Brenner stammered, clambering onto the first words that came to him. 

"Is that supposed to impress me? _Six kids,_ Martin!" Mr. Munson reminded him. He started walking again, signalling to Dr. Brenner that his time to convince him was just about up. 

"She-She's different than the rest," Dr. Brenner quickly explained. "We've been looking at this all wrong."

Mr. Munson stopped and slowly turned to look at Dr. Brenner. "What do you mean?"

"The kids we took before," Dr. Brenner began, taking a few steps to close the divide between them that Mr. Munson had created. "they were...regular, ordinary. We took them because we could, because nobody would notice. We didn't consider their...attributes."

"Attributes?" Mr. Munson asked. "What the hell are you talking about?" 

"There are children out there with connections to the supernatural. Exactly what and how, we're still unsure. But we've found one, and we're confident that she _will_ yield results," Dr. Brenner continued, a serious strain underlying his voice as he drew out the last three words. He was standing only inches away from Mr. Munson, his eyes pleading with him to reconsider. "Please, Mr. Munson. This work is vital to the safety and security of our country."

Mr. Munson stared hard into Dr. Brenner's eyes before sighing and shaking his head. "Show me her then."

"She is not currently in our custody..." Dr. Brenner said quietly, preparing himself for Mr. Munson's response.

" _What?_ " Mr. Munson fumed, his red face blocking Dr. Brenner's view as he threw himself in his face. 

"We're working on it!" Dr. Brenner reassured him. "She had an episode three days ago. We intercepted and planted a doctor to examine her. When we scanned her brain we found strange anomalies. Supernatural anomalies." 

"And how do you plan to take her if she has a family?"

"Our doctor informed her parents that she has cancer," Dr. Brenner answered. "This ensures that she will be taken in regularly to be examined by us. And in a few months time, we say that the cancer has progressed too far, and fake her death. Then she's ours."

Mr. Munson quietly considered what Dr. Brenner had to say. After a few moments of contemplation he bit his lip and sternly said, "You've got a year. If that girl is not intercepting Soviet Commie information with whatever supernatural abilities she has in a year, you won't only lose your funding, you'll lose _everything_. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, sir."

~~~

**JANUARY 8, 1985**

" _Seven years?_ " Mike exclaimed. "H-How is that possible?"

The party began to pester One with a barrage of rapid fire questions.

"What did you eat?"

"Did you kill any demogorgons?"

"Can you show us your scars?"

"Wait, if she was in the Upside Down this whole time, why couldn't El sense her?" Will asked last, turning to his friends. "Like she sensed me?"

They all looked to Eleven, who replied with a shrug. It baffled her too. A lot of things about this baffled her.

"I wasn't here," One offered an explanation for her.

"Right, you were in the Upside Down..." Dustin reiterated, rolling his eyes. 

"Yes, but I wasn't _here,_ " One emphasized, trying to think of a way to make them understand. "You have to remember that that place...the Upside Down...is a mirror image of our world. Our _whole_ world. Not just Hawkins." She was still unsure about calling it “the Upside Down”. She had always just referred to it as Hell.

"So where exactly were you?" Max asked.

"Minnesota," One replied. "Well, Upside Down Minnesota."

" _Atosennim..._ " Dustin whispered with wide eyes, pronouncing the word backwards. The rest of the group turned to look at him. "SNIKWAH!" Dustin shouted as he figured out another one.

"What do you remember," Eleven gently reached out to touch One's arm. One flinched at first, but allowed Eleven to flip her arm over to reveal her inner wrist. "about this?" Eleven finished her question as she traced the “001” etched into her skin.

One pulled down her sleeve to cover the tattoo and cradled her arm protectively against her chest. Eleven reached out again, determined to help her feel understood. This time she placed One's hand on her own tattoo, and it was One's turn to trace the “011” on her wrist.

"Papa," One whispered, staring straight into Eleven's eyes. She could see something familiar in them: pain.

"Papa," Eleven nodded. One looked around again at Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Steve. She was once more uncomfortable and unsure about what she should share with them. "It's okay. They know," Eleven reassured her.

"My earliest memory is of the lab," One recounted after a few moments of gathering some bravery. "I was seven. I remember him, Papa, making me do things that I didn't understand, but things that I knew weren't good."

"What kind of things?" Will asked.

"I can...um." One struggled with what to say. "Well I--here."

One stood so that she could see the white wall better over everybody's heads. She searched for any inconsistencies in the paint, any nicks, scrapes, dents...Something she could focus on. When she finally found a long scratch she concentrated all her energy on it and pictured a place. She picked the front of the arcade, where she had first met them. 

A whirling circle appeared on the wall and grew larger and larger with each breath. Through it, the arcade parking lot became visible. One shut it when the portal was about the size of an apple, weary of drawing attention from the other side. Everybody's mouths dropped in shock, and Steve just about fainted. 

"Was that a _portal?_ " Max asked. One nodded. 

" _Cool,_ " Dustin smiled after registering what he had just seen. 

“Wait, why didn’t your nose bleed? El’s bleeds almost every time she uses her powers,” Lucas pointed out.

“It bled at first...” One answered. “But I’ve done it too many times now.” This answer drew some concerned looks.

“Keep telling us the story,” Eleven redirected the conversation.

"He made me make those...portals...so that he could spy on people," One continued. "He even sent people through them."

"So that's how you got in and out of the Upside Down..." Lucas realized, putting two and two together. One took a few moments to respond.

"...Yes," One confirmed hesitantly. She was unsure of how they would react. "But something is wrong with them, with me..."

“What do you mean?” Eleven asked. 

“I...When I was in the Upside Down, I couldn’t...” A small tear formed in the corner of her eyes as she recalled some gruesome memories. “I couldn’t get out. Until I came here, to Upside Down Hawkins—”

“Snikwah,” Dustin corrected her.

“To Snikwah...” One amended her statement, giving Dustin a weird glance. “My portals wouldn’t work. It’s like I was meant to come here.”

Eleven nodded her head in agreement to One’s last statement. She had felt the same way since she saw the “001” tattoo on her arm. They were meant to find each other.

“But what about before?” Steve finally piped up, making everyone snap their heads back towards him. After One’s display they kind of assumed that he was unconscious.

“Before?” Sarah asked in confusion.

“Before the Upside Down, before Hawkins Lab,” Steve clarified. “Do you remember your life before all that? Do you remember your family?”

“No,” One shook her head. “Nothing.”


	9. The Nightmare

**OCTOBER 15, 1970**

"It's time, One," Dr. Brenner announced as he opened her door. She glanced up from where she was sitting on her cot, a broken look smeared across her face.

"Yes, Papa," she said dully, her body moving robotically as she pushed herself to her feet and joined Dr. Brenner at the door. He put his hand on her shoulder and led her down the hallway.

One shuffled slowly at his side in her white hospital gown, her eyes staring ahead but not really seeing anything. It had been four months of constant trials, and she had quickly gotten better and stronger. She had been forced to make so many portals that it almost became second-nature to her. Sometimes she would awake in the middle of the night from a loud noise, and open her eyes to see a portal to an airport floating above her head. One time she accidentally opened a portal to the middle of a forest and a squirrel got into her room.

She never considered escaping through these portals though. Perhaps because she was too broken and dead inside. Perhaps because she didn't even know what she would escape to. Any memories of her former life, of whatever family she once had, were either deeply buried or gone forever. Or replaced. Replaced with memories of the lab and Papa, the only home and family she knew.

She continued along at his side, her hand hanging limply in his. She didn't know where he was taking her but she assumed it meant she'd have to use her powers again. She instinctively wiped her nose.

At last they reached their destination and Dr. Brenner motioned for her to step inside. Before her sat a squat man with an impatient gaze. He looked her up and down with an unimpressed glare before sighing and checking his watch.

"It's been exactly a year, Brenner," Mr. Munson said plainly. "Show me what you've got."

"I won't let you down, sir," Dr. Brenner promised.

"You better not," Mr. Munson huffed. "For your own sake. You remember what's on the line?"

"Yes, sir," Dr. Brenner stammered. One stared up at him curiously. She had never seen him act this way before...afraid. A small part of her reveled in it. Now he knew how she felt. "Go ahead, One," Dr. Brenner directed her.

One continued to stare up at him wordlessly, before stepping in front of the table that Mr. Munson was sitting at. A large black briefcase sat on the metal table between them. Something to focus on.

Usually it didn't take her long to create a portal. They often happened just by thinking of them, but in that moment she was struggling. Maybe it was the pressure, maybe it was the speculating glare of a man who scared the man who scared her.

After a few minutes passed, Mr. Munson checked his watching again, a tutting noise coming from his mouth.

" _One,_ " Dr. Brenner whispered harshly between clenched teeth. " _Do it._ " One concentrated as hard as she could, her body visibly shaking from the effort. She knew what failure meant for her.

Impatient, Mr. Munson reached for his suitcase, but right as his fingers were about to touch the handle it dropped from his grasp. His mouth hung open as he stared at the table. There was a hole where his suitcase had sat, and through the hole he could see the rough waves of the ocean. The smell of sea salt wafted through the portal and into his nose and his ears were filled with the sound of gulls. 

Entranced, he began to reach for the portal. He hesitated when he reached its edge, but curiosity drove his arm through. His fingertips caressed the tips of the waves and a smile immediately spread across his face. It felt so cold. And then it felt nothing. 

Loud gasps erupted from Dr. Brenner and the guards as they watched the portal snap shut on Mr. Munson's arm, severing it in half. It took a moment for Mr. Munson to register what had happened, but when he looked down and saw a bloody stump where the rest of his arm had been he screamed so loud it shook the entire room. 

Wide-eyed, Dr. Brenner immediately grabbed One by the shoulders and pushed her out of the room. He rushed her down the hallway at a speed that almost had her tripping over her own feet. She could hear the piercing screams of Mr. Munson the whole way. 

She expected him to throw her in her room and lock her away for days on end, but they passed it. She looked up and met his eyes, searching for answers, but all she found was fear. And...pride? 

When they got far enough away that the screams were barely audible, Dr. Brenner stopped and looked around wildly before leaning down to peer into her eyes. He placed one hand on her cheek and stroked her buzzed head with the other. Her hair had begun to grow back during her time at the lab, but anytime it grew past a few centimeters they shaved it off again. Her big blue eyes swam with worry and confusion. 

"What you did in there..." Dr. Brenner began, pausing to sigh and bite his cheek. One winced, prepared for the punishment. "I'm proud of you." 

"Proud?" One said as if it was a word she'd never heard before. Dr. Brenner nodded his head. 

"We will do great things together," he smiled. For a brief moment that smile made her feel safe. "We'll save the world." 

"Okay Papa," One smiled. 

"That's my girl." 

~~~

**JANUARY 8, 1985**

"Dude, you've missed so much in the last seven years," Dustin said from the back of Steve's car. With the exception of Will, who was picked up by his mom, and Max, who was picked up by her brother, they had all crammed into Steve's beat-up BMW like a clown car. "Ghostbusters, the Walkman, Skittles..."

"Ghost-busters?" One asked cluelessly.

"We'll get you caught up, don't worry," Mike assured her.

"You will?" One asked in surprise.

"Yeah, you're our friend now," Mike answered simply, like it was obvious. "You're a part of the party."

A warm smile spread across One's lips and she sheepishly looked down at her feet. _Friends._ It had been a long time since she had had one of those.

"Alright you hooligans," Steve said as he parked in Mike's driveway. He turned around to stare them each in the eyes with his best stern-dad look. "Stay out of trouble." With each word he pointed at Dustin, Mike, Lucas, and Eleven in order. When he got to One her intense gaze made his hand go from pointing at her to not-so-casually brushing his hair.

The three boys rolled their eyes as they clambered out and bid their farewells. 

"Next stop, the Chief's," Steve announced.

The rest of the car ride was short and silent. Each of them were processing the day's information in their own ways. Eleven and One thanked Steve for the ride when they reached Hopper's cabin, waving at him through his rear view mirror as he drove away. As he was driving Steve's eyes lingered on One a little too long, and they laughed as they watched him swerve to avoid hitting a tree.

"There you two are," Hopper greeted them, holding the door open for them. "Nice clothes," he commented when he saw One.

The rest of the night seemed to go by in a blur. They ate microwaveable meals for dinner, watched a Western, and then got ready for bed. Hopper grabbed One some extra pillows and blankets and she once again settled in on the couch. 

As One drifted to sleep, familiar visions began to enter her mind. Darkness. Ash. Monsters. When she finally fell into a deep slumber, she was transported. 

_Distant roars emanated in her ears. She turned wildly in circles, trying to pinpoint their location. They were coming from everywhere. They were getting closer. One's hands crackled with blue electricity as she prepared herself for the attack._

_"One," a voice echoed around her. It didn't come from the monsters... "One," it repeated itself._

_"Who-who's there?" One asked, searching for the source. That voice...it sounded so...familiar._

_"One." One stumbled as the voice came from right behind her. She slowly turned to meet the owner, her whole spine tingling in fear. She knew who it was before she even saw them._

_"Papa," she whispered, but when she turned fully around nobody was there. For some reason it made her feel more afraid that she couldn't see him than if she could. She began to run._

_"ONE!" the voice yelled, following after her, but it sounded different this time. It sounded like..._

"ONE!" Hopper yelled, shaking her out of her nightmare. One's eyes flashed open and she found herself back in the cabin. "Close that thing!" 

One looked beyond Hopper and Eleven's horrified faces to see a portal the size of a hula hoop floating seven feet off the ground. The shadowy familiarity of the Upside Down peeked through on the other side. But there was something more, something in the distance...

The roar she had heard in her dream erupted from the portal and One watched in fear as a charging demogorgon got closer and closer. Her body froze in place. 

"CLOSE IT!" Hopper yelled, pulling his gun from his holster and aiming it through the portal. Eleven raised her arm in preparation, ready to fight it off when it got close enough. 

One concentrated and tried to shut the portal but it wasn't working. The demogorgon was getting closer. She tried again and again and again. Still closer. The petals of its head opened to reveal infinite rows of jagged teeth. It was now within feet of the portal. 

"NOW!" Hopper shouted. Loud pops from his gun shot off through the portal, striking the demogorgon and setting it back a few feet. The bullets only temporarily delayed it, however. It leaped for the portal, its head snapping and growling at them as it began to pass through. 

Hopper stared down it's endless throat of teeth and darkness, mentally preparing himself for his own death. He took a deep breath and shut his eyes, awaiting the inevitable. But the inevitable didn't come. Hopper slowly opened one eye at a time, afraid of what he might see, but when he looked around the portal and the demogorgon were gone. Well, most of the demogorgon.

Hopper jumped five feet in the air as he looked down to see the head of the demogorgon lying at his feet. The petals were flopped open, displaying itself like a grotesque evil flower. "WHAT IN THE HELL WAS THAT!" Hopper shouted at One after rushing over to check on Eleven. 

"I-I'm..." One stuttered. 

"What?" Hopper snapped. "Trying to kill us?" 

Tears built up in the corners of One's eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered. Eleven tried to get to her, but Hopper shielded her from One.

"El, a word," Hopper said harshly, leading Eleven into the kitchen and away from One. One stood rooted to her spot in the living room, tears flowing freely down her face. 

"What?" Eleven snapped, mad that he wouldn't let her check on One. She tried to look around him to catch One's eye but he kept blocking her view.

"What did I tell you?" Hopper asked with his hands on his hips. "Anything happens and she's gone. Well something just happened!"

"No!" Eleven yelled, crossing her arms defiantly. 

"She just opened a doorway for all the monsters who want to kill you!" Hopper argued. "I cannot allow her to stay here knowing that it's going to jeopardize your safety!" 

"I'm fine!" Eleven yelled. 

" _This_ time you are!" 

"She didn't mean to!" 

"So it will happen again!"

Eleven screamed in frustration and collapsed onto a chair. Both their faces were a matching shade of bright red. Seeing how upset she was, Hopper's features softened a bit. He knelt beside the chair so that their eye level was even. 

"Look kid," he sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't want to kick her out but you are my responsibility. If anything were to happen to you..." Hopper paused to stifle a cry as he imagined a life without Eleven. "We'll find her somewhere else to stay, I promise. Just...not here."

Eleven was too angry to say anything so she just continued to glare at him. When she couldn't stand to look at him anymore, she hopped up from the chair and pushed him aside to get to her room. But when she got to the living room she noticed that something was amiss...

"Where's One?" Hopper asked, following behind her. The living room was empty, and after a thorough check, they realized that the entirety of the cabin was as well. She was gone. Hopper sighed, realizing that she had overheard them. "Shit."


	10. A Place to Sleep

**APRIL 28, 1971**

One sat on the linoleum floor with her back against her door, glazed eyes staring forward at the empty air before her. She was devoid of all feelings and senses, save her hearing. Her ears were alert for every footfall, every utter, every pen drop. This was her life now. Listening.

Lately she had begun to hear new sounds from the other side of her door: other children. She hadn't seen them, but she knew they were there. Papa had found more. 

One ran her finger along the red and swollen lines on her wrist, tracing the new tattoo they had given her: _001._ The screams of other children had told her that she was not the only one to receive the painful permanent marks. She wondered what numbers they had been tattooed with. 

The clicking of shoes echoed down the hallway and One tensed as they got closer to her door. Would they stop? She let out an audible sigh when the clicks passed, but was caught off guard by an accompanied sound: crying. 

One hated using her powers but her curiosity overwhelmed her and she decided to finally give her ears a rest and rely on a different sense for once: sight. She opened a small portal into the hallway and was met with the back of Dr. Brenner's white coat.

He was holding something in his arms but One had a difficult time seeing it from the position of her portal. Itching to get a better look, One closed the first portal and opened a second one closer to Dr. Brenner. She had opened it too close though and Dr. Brenner turned on his heel to face it when he heard her breaths coming from behind him. 

One jumped back when his intense dark eyes flooded her view. But what was even more surprising than the look on his face was what was bundled up in his arms...

A baby.

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

One gasped as she fell through the portal, vibrations running up her calves as she dropped hard onto her feet. It was never guaranteed exactly how far off the ground her portals would open, it was a science she still had yet to master. This one had thankfully only been two feet but she had fallen out of one that had been seven feet off the ground once.

After a moment to collect herself, One's eyes darted around to get a feel for her surroundings. She hadn't pictured a specific place, she had just wanted to get out of Hopper's cabin. She felt ashamed of the danger she had put them through. They were nice enough to house, feed, and clothe her and how did she repay them? By having a monster nearly decapitate Hopper. It was best if she stayed away from them, for their safety.

She found herself in the middle of a dense wood. While she couldn't tell for certain, she had a strong feeling that she hadn't strayed as far as she had hoped. She would have opened another portal to find someplace a little more comfortable to sleep, but something told her not to leave so quickly.

She caught sight of a chain metal fence poking through the brush ahead of her and hesitantly stepped forward to investigate. The shiny silver seemed so strange among the dull brown and green colors of the forest. As she got closer she saw that the fence went on in a seemingly never-ending direction both ways. It went so far that it disappeared into the looming fog the night had produced. She looked up and found that the top of the fence disappeared into the fog as well.

She couldn't fathom a reason, but she felt drawn to touch the fence. Her head pulled back as her hand pushed forward and felt the cold metal, wet with dew from the incoming morning. The second her fingers touched the fence she jumped back like she had been electrocuted, even though she could tell the fence wasn't electrified. Something else had given her the shock: she knew that fence. 

Her breathing and her feet both picked up as she began to run the length of the perimeter until she found what she was looking for. Rising out of the ominous darkness and into the faint light of the early morning was a building that she knew all too well. A building that had inspired her nightmares and scared her more than the Upside Down: the Lab. 

One stood rooted to her spot in fear, her entire body frozen and her eyes wide. _It was here. It had always been here._ The earliest memory she could remember was from inside the Lab so she had never truly known where it was located. She was never permitted outdoors during her residency with the lab and any glimpses of the outside world had been nearly impossible because windows were a rarity in the building. As far as she had been concerned, the lab could have been on a floating island in the middle of space. _But it was here._

_And she was here._ Why? Was this the reason that her portals had only allowed her out of the Upside Down here? To escape the monsters of that world for the monsters of this world? Was Papa lurking inside waiting for her to return? What kind of cruel joke was this? 

One still couldn't find the ability to run but she needed to get out of there. _Fast._ She summoned a portal beneath her feet and let gravity do the work that her body had been unable to. The impact of hitting the ground knocked the motion back into her and she jumped to her feet. 

A gray single-level house sat before her with a Ford Pinto and Ford LTD parked in the driveway. The dull, familiar woods beyond it told her that her portal had still managed to keep her close. She needed to be farther, _much_ farther. 

She envisioned California as she opened a portal but the view that greeted her from the other side was the arcade. _Hawkins._ She tried again, this time picturing Maine, but all she saw through the portal was the hallway behind Scoops Ahoy. _Hawkins again._ One screamed in frustration as she tried again and again and was presented with a different part of Hawkins every time. Why couldn’t she leave this godforsaken town?

A golden glow from the porch suddenly lit up One's back and she turned to meet it. Illuminated underneath it was a woman in a shabby robe and slippers. "Hello?" she called into the twilight sky. "Who's there?" 

One's face turned pale as she struggled with what to do next. The woman could clearly see her. Should she run? Should she try another portal? One was about to make a decision when somebody else joined the woman at the front door. 

"Mom?" Will asked. "What's going on?"

"I-I'm not sure, honey, go back to bed," Joyce responded, patting Will's shoulder but keeping her eyes on One. A look of surprise flooded Will's face as he followed his mother's inquisitive gaze. 

"One?" Will called out.

"Hi Will," One sighed, offering a small wave. Joyce looked between the two in confusion. Who was this girl?

"Mom, it's okay," Will reassured her, resting a hand on her arm. "She's a friend. Her name is One." Joyce finally broke her gaze to look down at her son for a moment before returning her eyes to One.

"Honey, are you okay?" Joyce asked One. "What are you doing out here at such a late hour?" 

"I-I don't have anywhere to go," One stammered, wrapping her arms around her body and looking down at the ground in embarrassment. 

"Well come in." Joyce waved to her. "Come inside, you can stay here for a little while and get some rest. You look exhausted." 

After hearing the offer One took a small step back. Visions of the demogorgon closing in on Hopper and Eleven rippled through her mind and sent a shiver down her spine. What if it happened again? She didn't want to hurt anyone. But at the same time she really did need a place to sleep...

"It's alright," Joyce called out, taking a few careful steps towards her. 

One tried to move away but found that she was locked in place again. This time from fatigue rather than fear. By the time she had worked up a small shred of energy to move Joyce had already reached her. Instead of running she used that energy to mutter a single word: "Danger."

Joyce wrapped an arm around her and began to lead her inside. "We'll keep you safe, don't you worry. Now let's get you inside and out of this cold." She didn't seem to quite understand the meaning of One's warning, but One didn't have the energy to correct her.

One followed weakly at her side, her eyes meeting Will's as she passed him on the way to the couch in the living room. As she sat down she felt her entire body melt into the yellow and white striped couch. She was so tired. Her eyes became heavier and heavier and the last thing she saw was Joyce covering her with a blanket. 

One night. She'd just stay one night.


	11. A Message in the Lights

**DECEMBER 6, 1972**

“Now, One, today is a special day,” Dr. Brenner began, sitting next to One on her bed. She looked up at him with faded eyes. Was it possible that irises could lose color? Because her eyes had been starting to look more gray than blue lately...“Today we’re going to send someone through.”

“Through?” One asked weakly.

“Yes, my dear,” Dr. Brenner smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Come along.”

Dr. Brenner rose and held a hand out to her. With downcast eyes she slowly placed her tiny hand in his and slid off the bed, her bare feet slapping against the cold linoleum floor. She used to flinch when that happened but not anymore. She’d gotten used to it.

Together they winded through the many corridors of the labyrinth that was the lab until they reached a large open space with a suspended walkway and enclosed glass room. People moved about behind the glass, pressing blinking buttons and turning strange dials. 

Dr. Brenner continued to hold her hand as he led her down a set of stairs to the main floor. One could feel a sea of eyes staring silently down at her. She tried not to look around too much at the crowd they were passing through but her curiosity altered her gaze every now and then. People in white coats like Papa, military uniforms, and neatly pressed suits surrounded them. She felt smaller than she usually did.

At last they stopped when they reached a raised stage. Dr. Brenner instructed her to sit on a chair in the center as he stood in front of her to address the audience. From up here she had a better view and could study the crowd more closely. The audience before her all sat in the same positions with the same looks upon their faces. They seemed more robot than human. Among them, she noticed the one-armed Mr. Munson. 

“I would like to thank you all for coming today,” Dr. Brenner began. “We have discovered something incredible here, something that could change the world as we know it. This child,” Dr. Brenner paused to refer to One. “has abilities that will help our great nation to ensure that we stay at the forefront of power.”

A round of clapping erupted from the audience, somehow starting and ending at the exact same time. One gulped as she realized why Dr. Brenner had brought her there. He was putting on a show...and she was the star. 

“We have found others like her,” Dr. Brenner continued. “But none as powerful as her. One, please step forward.” One hesitantly pushed herself from the chair, joining Papa at his side. She latched onto his arm in fear, evoking a smile and chuckle from him. “As you can see, we have a close relationship. Like father and daughter, right One?”

One stared up into Dr. Brenner’s eyes with an expressionless face. His stare told her he expected a response. “Yes, Papa,” she said quietly. His smile grew larger.

“Now, One, I need you to show these wonderful people what you can do.”

One continued to stare up at him until he gently pushed her to the front of the stage. Her knees began to wobble under the pressure and she would have collapsed had Dr. Brenner’s hand not been resting against her back to balance her.

“Think of a place, any place,” Dr. Brenner leaned down to whisper in her ear. It was hard for her to envision a place when the only one she had known was the lab, but for some strange reason she wanted to impress these people. Or more importantly, Papa.

One studied the crowd for something to focus on. She found a blue flower lapel on a woman’s jacket and stared at it until a whirling circle of light appeared above her head. The woman, along with the rest of the audience, collectively gasped at the sight. 

Their mouths continued to hang open when a red and blue parrot flew through the portal and began to circle the room. After everyone’s eyes had finished following the parrot, they returned back to the portal where they found a wealth of lush greenery and colorful flowers. The calls of many tropical birds confirmed their suspicions: One had opened a portal to the jungle.

One looked back to Dr. Brenner with a big smile, her eyes searching his for the pride she craved. The look he returned told her there was still more to come. “Please continue to focus your attention on the portal as we send someone through it! Mr. Sanchez, if you please.” 

One’s smile dropped as she remembered what Dr. Brenner had said in her room. Her stomach did an uneasy flip. The screams of Mr. Munson’s arm being severed from his body still haunted her nightmares. What if she did it again? A drop of blood rolled from her nose to her lips to her chin and finally to the ground.

One returned her gaze to her portal where she watched them move the woman out of her chair so that a man in his late twenties could climb onto it; the presumed Mr. Sanchez. She focused all her effort on the portal as he crossed through, trying her hardest to prevent it from closing on him. She shut her eyes and let out a deep sigh of relief once he had fully disappeared into the portal, but the relaxation broke her concentration and the portal snapped shut. The crowd gasped once more, but for different reasons. Mr. Sanchez was gone.

One turned back to look at Dr. Brenner again, but the pride she had just seen was replaced with anger. “ _Get him back,_ ” he growled through his teeth. 

One began to hyperventilate. She tried to summon the portal again but between her pounding heart and the fearful murmurs of the audience she couldn’t remember exactly where she had sent Mr. Sanchez. To open the initial portal she had just thought of a picture from a National Geographic magazine she had seen sitting in Dr. Brenner’s office. 

With a nod of his head guards began to pour down the aisles and towards the stage. She had to get Mr. Sanchez back or she too would disappear. 

She tried to picture the National Geographic picture again but when that wasn’t working she instead began to think of Mr. Sanchez himself. She pictured him standing on the chair in his neatly pressed tan suit. He had a large mole on his cheek right below his glasses. His dark brown hair parted from the right and curled around his ears. She continued to think of him until blood was streaming from both of her nostrils.

Then it happened. A new portal opened in the same spot, but the interior looked different this time. Instead of tall trees and undergrowth, there were paved streets with lines of copycat houses and strange looking cars. One was about to give up and close the portal when a hand thrusted through it. The room watched speechlessly as an old bespectacled man with a shock of white hair and a mole on his cheek climbed through the portal. 

“Who are you?” Dr. Brenner asked once the man had clambered down from the chair.

“Brian,” the man answered. “Brian Sanchez.”

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

"Will! Jonathan!" Joyce yelled from the kitchen. "You guys are going to be late for school!"

One's eyelids flickered open and for a brief moment she panicked when she didn't recognize her surroundings. Then she remembered. She did a mental check as she scanned the house: roof still above her, standing walls, no demogorgons...Check, check, check. Overall the Byers' house appeared to be in tact. _Good, I didn't do it again._

"Sleep okay?" Joyce asked when she noticed One stirring. "Sorry, I wish we had an extra bed you could sleep on, I hope the couch was enough..."

"Perfect," One responded quickly. "The couch was perfect. Thank you, Ms. Byers."

"Please, call me Joyce," Joyce corrected her with a warm smile.

"Thank you, Joyce,"

"So..." Joyce began, unsure of where to start or what to ask this mysterious girl who had wandered around her front yard late at night and crashed on her couch. Will had filled her in on some key components of the situation but she was still processing all the information. Even with everything she had experienced with Will it was still a lot to take in. "What are your plans for the day? I assume you're not in school anymore..." Joyce looked One up and down, assessing her appearance and attempting to surmise an age.

"I'm not sure," One responded. She didn't know her exact age or even her own birthday but she was pretty sure she was 21, possibly 22. Either way she was too old to really get a proper formal education anymore, not that she had ever gotten one in the first place. The only thing they had taught her at the Lab was how to develop her powers. A small pang of jealousy hit her when she saw Will and Jonathan enter the living room with backpacks on. What would it be like to have a normal life?

"Hello..." Jonathan greeted One in surprise, looking to his mom and Will for some sort of answer that explained the stranger in their living room. 

"Oh, Jonathan, this is One!" Joyce introduced the pair for them. "One, this is my oldest, Jonathan."

"Nice to meet you," Jonathan said slowly, giving her a small nod. One returned the nod to signify that she felt the same way. "Alright Will, let's get going before we're late."

"Bye mom! Bye One!" Will called as he followed Jonathan out the front door. 

"Bye you two, be safe!" Joyce yelled after them. "And Jonathan, don't forget that Will is going over to Mike's after school!" Joyce stood in the doorway for a few moments as she fondly watched her kids drive off. Once she could no longer see the tail end of Jonathan's '72 LTD, she took a deep breath and shut the door. 

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but I have to go to work," Joyce informed One as she began to gather her things. "There's leftover pizza in the fridge that you can help yourself to. I should be back by five at the latest. Are you going to be okay here by yourself?" Joyce stopped to look at her as she asked the last question.

One just nodded her head and stared down at the ground. Joyce bit the inside of her lip and took a few steps closer to One so that she could rest her hands on her shoulders. She tilted her head until she caught One's eyes. The poor thing looked like she had been through so much. "The bad men and the monsters can't get you anymore. You're safe here." 

One looked up to meet Joyce's gaze and gave another nod in response, albeit slightly delayed. When Joyce was content that One understood she gave her shoulders a small squeeze and headed for the door. After a warm smile and a wave, Joyce was gone.

Unsure what to do next, One threw herself back on the couch. Should she leave? Should she stay? She hadn't opened another portal to the Upside Down in her sleep...but that didn't mean it wouldn't happen again...Hopper's yells began to bounce around in her head over and over until the voice changed and she imagined Joyce shouting the same things...

_"Trying to kill us?"_

_"So it will happen again!"_

_"We'll find her somewhere else to stay, I promise. Just...not here."_

A deep sadness settled into her bones and silent tears began to slide down her cheeks. Would she ever find a home? One decided to capitalize on the former choice of leaving when a strange sound rocked her from her thoughts and snapped her head around to the wall behind her. 

It had sounded like somebody knocking...from the other side...She knew, or at least she felt confident, that nobody else was there. Maybe her ears were just playing tricks. She was still pretty tired...As fatigue once more settled down upon her mind her eyelids began to bob up and down, up and down until a flash of light startled them open permanently.

The lights in the kitchen and living room began to simultaneously flicker in a chaotic yet seemingly calculated pattern. Was this a normal occurrence at the Byers' house? One slowly rose from the couch to go investigate but another set of loud pounding from behind her sent her body back down to the couch like a magnet. What the hell was going on?

A new sound accompanied the banging and flickering of lights echoing around the house. One watched in a mixture of horror and curiosity as a set of invisible claws tore through the floral wallpaper. The set of scratches stretched from the ceiling to the top of the couch, exposing black lines of paint underneath. 

Despite the fact that something had just shredded the wall, One felt compelled to lean in closer and investigate. She slowly peeled back more of the top layer of wallpaper so that she could get a better view of the mysterious paint underneath. As she tore through more of the crumbling wallpaper, she began to notice letters. _S, T, U, V..._ The alphabet?

Granted, One had been out of the loop for fourteen years, but it still seemed like an odd choice of decor. Unless they served a purpose...? Almost as if in response to her thought, the lights all turned off simultaneously except for the lamp next to the couch. It began to burn brighter and brighter until One slowly rose to examine it.

When she got close enough to feel the intense heat emanating off of the lightbulb it blinked out. One stood above it, studying it perplexingly until another light flashed in her peripheral vision. The lamp in the kitchen across the hall began to do the same thing as the one in the living room, and it too burned out when One approached it. 

Then the light fixture closest to her on the hallway wall lit up. And then the next one, and the next one, until it had led One all the way down to a closet. One's hand shook uncontrollably as it reached out for the closet's handle. She flinched at the click of the doorknob turning and took a deep breath before she revealed the contents within. 

Her face lit up in rainbows as she peered in at a bundle of glowing multi-colored Christmas lights. One was too curious to be creeped out by the fact that the Christmas lights weren't even plugged in. Is this what the mysterious invisible entity had wanted her to find? The Christmas lights blinked once.

The path of lights she had taken began to light up again in order, picking up speed each time the pattern repeated itself. Now One understood what she had to do. Gingerly picking up the pile of multi-colored Christmas lights along with a hammer and a box of nails, One returned the living room to begin her task.

After a few minutes of tearing and pounding, One stood back to admire her work. She had torn off the rest of the wallpaper (she would have to come up with a way to apologize to Joyce later) and looped the string of Christmas lights between the alphabet so that each letter had its own little colorful bulb. The uninvited smile on her face faltered when she realized that she had basically just created a rainbow ouija board. 

"Did I do it right?" One asked the wall hesitantly. She felt like anybody else in her situation would immediately dismiss the whole scenario as craziness, but compared to what she had been through this was practically normal. 

One stood on the couch with her eyes glued to the wall and braced herself for a response. One by one the tiny lightbulbs flickered above the letters: _Y, E, S._

One let out a breath she didn't even know she had been holding. It worked! Somebody was really trying to talk to her! _But who?_ "Who are you?"

She waited and waited but the lights remained dark. They didn't want to answer that question apparently...So One came up with a new one, "What do you want?"

_C..._

One felt her heart begin to race as her eyes followed the lights.

_O..._

Her chest heaved up and down.

_M..._

A layer of sweat began to build on her skin.

_I..._

Her breathing was becoming harder and harder to keep up with.

_N..._

Her eyes widened until the whites were larger than her pupils. 

_G..._

She jumped off the couch and stumbled to the floor after tripping over the coffee table. She laid paralyzed on the floor, staring up at the six lit letters.

"Coming," One whispered.


	12. Told You So

**DECEMBER 6, 1972**

"How did you do it?" Dr. Brenner asked One, a look of awe still plastered on his face. He had cut the presentation short to further investigate what had just happened. Right now this was more important than the approval of some of the most important men and women in the country.

"I-I don't know..." One said quietly, squirming in her chair. Dr. Brenner had taken her to his office for more privacy. Goosebumps lined her arms and legs from the fan directly above her. "I just thought of him and—"

"You found him," Dr. Brenner finished for her. "Forty years later."

One didn't respond other than looking uncomfortably up at Dr. Brenner's face. She couldn't tell whether she was in trouble or not. She didn't exactly understand what had happened herself. She had done what he had told her to, she had brought Mr. Sanchez back. Just not the right Mr. Sanchez.

"Remarkable," Dr. Brenner smiled. "You are truly gifted. You are the most special girl in the entire world."

Dr. Brenner couldn't help but relish in the thought of the power and success these new abilities could bring him. With One's help, they could change the tide of the Cold War. They could change the tide of all wars! America would always be #1 throughout history.

One smiled at the praise but deep down she sensed that she had made a grave mistake. Dr. Brenner patted his lap and signaled for her to climb onto it. One did so hesitantly, the thought of imminent doom still lurking in the back of her mind, but it disappeared the moment her Papa was holding her. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all.

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

The bell above the door of Melvald's General Store rang to announce the presence of a new customer. Joyce looked up from the book she had been engrossed in and sighed when she saw who it was. 

"Joyce, I need your help," Hopper announced as he entered. He sped over to the check-out and slapped his hands against the counter.

"When don't you?" Joyce mumbled under her breath. 

"I'm just going to pretend like I didn't hear that," Hopper replied, his mustache twitching in frustration. 

"What do you need?" Joyce sighed, dog-earing the page she was on and setting the book down on the counter. Which was a harder feat than it should have been since Hopper's big bear hands took up most of the space. 

"I'm looking for someone, a girl," Hopper explained. "Early twenties, blonde hair with red tips, blue eyes. About five foot six and was last seen wearing a pinstriped button-up with black pants and a leather jacket. Have you seen her?" 

Joyce glanced up at Hopper with a look of shock when she realized that he had just described the girl at her house. "You mean One?" Why was Hopper looking for One?

"You know her?" Hopper asked incredulously.

"She's staying at my place," Joyce clarified. 

"She's _staying_ with you?" Hopper asked with raised brows. 

"Yeah, I found her wandering around my yard late last night. She said she had nowhere to go," Joyce answered defensively. 

Hopper looked down sheepishly at the ground. He did feel bad about what he had said the previous night, but he had just been scared. Not for himself but for El. She was his whole world now, and nothing was more important to him than protecting her. "You need to be careful, she's dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Joyce scoffed. "Hop, she's just a girl."

"Yeah, but she has abilities..." Hopper started to argue.

"El has abilities," Joyce pointed out. "Do you think she's dangerous?"

"That's different," Hopper said quietly through clenched teeth. He was trying very hard to keep his cool so he didn't blow up at Joyce. "Look, she was staying with me and El and..."

"Wait, you _kicked her out?_ " Joyce interrupted him once she realized where his sentence was going. "Hop!"

"No! I was going to _relocate_ her and she overheard some heated words that were said in the moment and ran away," Hopper rushed to explain. He then slowed down and sighed. "I just want to make sure she's okay."

"She's fine, Hop." Joyce reached out to put a hand on his shoulder once she heard the sympathy in his voice. "I'm watching out for her."

Hopper felt a warmth spread through his body at Joyce's touch. He couldn't help but put his hand over hers and feel her soft skin. His hand was only able to linger there a moment though before Joyce pulled away and looked down in embarrassment. It was too soon. 

"Did she tell you why she ran away?" Hopper asked after a few moments of awkward silence.

"No..." Joyce responded skeptically.

"She opened a portal to the Upside Down and let a demogorgon into my house."

"I'm sure it wasn't on purpose..." Joyce tried to maintain a calm tone but that bit of news did scare her a bit. 

"It wasn't, but that's not the point. El and I nearly died. Think about Will."

"I am. I always am, Jim," Joyce snapped angrily. Hopper's features softened at the sound of his first name. Joyce never used his first name, she always called him 'Hop'. "But who's going to think of that poor girl, huh? Who's supposed to protect her?"

"I'm just giving you a warning."

"You know what?" Joyce asked, slapping her hands against the countertop and standing abruptly. "My shift is just about over, I'll close up early and we can go to my house so you can see that everything is perfectly fine." 

Joyce grabbed the keys and her purse and passed a speechless Hopper to flip the “open” sign to “closed”. The tinkle of the bell echoed through the silence and Joyce stood waiting impatiently underneath it. "You coming?" she asked.

Hopper grumbled and readjusted his hat before following Joyce out of the store and to her car. The ride to Joyce’s house was short and sweet and when they pulled up in front Joyce brandished her arm as if to say “told you so”.

“Not so fast,” Hopper said, opening the car door and stepping out. Something seemed off...Joyce followed him up the driveway and to the front door. The two felt compelled to look at each other before Hopper cautiously turned the knob and the door swung open.

The first thing they saw was piles of floral wallpaper strewed across the floor. When their eyes traveled up to the wall they both gasped at the same time. The alphabet was fully visible and underneath it hung Joyce’s Christmas lights. One was nowhere in sight.

“Shit,” Joyce sighed.


	13. Steve the Savior

**APRIL 17, 1973**

“We’ve been trying for months, sir. I don’t think it’s going to happen.”

“It _has_ to happen,” Dr. Brenner seethed. His gaze was fixed intently on One through the glass window that separated them. “ _Again!_ ” Dr. Brenner shouted into the microphone before him, simultaneously slamming his hand against the table it sat on.

The microphone screeched from his volume and pierced One’s ears. Tears streamed down her face as she pressed her hands against the sides of her head. She had been trying so hard, but it wasn’t working. She was unable to replicate the portal she opened for Mr. Sanchez, the portal into a different time. _And Papa was mad._

“I told you to find this woman!” Dr. Brenner slapped a picture against the window for One to see. “Now find her, but in 1942!”

“It doesn’t work like that...” One tried to explain but she cowered in fear when Dr. Brenner’s face became several shades redder.

“ _I don’t care how it works, just do it!_ ” 

One took a few steps closer to study the picture better. She memorized every minuscule detail about the woman; the wrinkles around her eyes, the scar above her right eyebrow, every unique curl in her wild white hair...

“ _Now!_ ” 

One wiped away the tears and stared deep into Dr. Brenner’s eyes. She focused on the blackness of his pupils and envisioned them as tiny portals. In the portals she pictured the woman and 1942, and soon enough a portal opened between her and Dr. Brenner.

The portal cut off her view of Dr. Brenner’s face, but she knew quickly enough that she had made him even angrier when she heard a familiar voice come from the other side: Mr. Munson.

“Brenner?” Mr. Munson asked in exasperation from the other side. “What do you want?”

One didn’t give Dr. Brenner time to respond before she snapped the portal shut in shame and embarrassment. Dr. Brenner’s gaze met her once more and she shriveled under its intensity.

“Get her out of my sight,” Dr. Brenner said to his comrades, speaking just loud enough that One could pick it up through the microphone. 

She tried to run or to hide, anything to escape the rough hands of the guards, but there was nowhere to go and soon her fate was sealed. Dr. Brenner watched coldly from the other side of the glass as her soundless screams disappeared with the guards through the doorway.

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

One couldn't move from her spot on the floor. She was glued to the carpet in fear. Coming? Who was coming? A friend or an enemy? Whoever it was, One had an inkling about where they were coming from...the Upside Down.

Part of One wanted to open a portal to confront her mystery messenger head on, but the uncertainty of what she would meet kept her from doing so. What if that's exactly what they wanted? What if they wanted to get through? She didn't want to do that to Joyce and her family. Not like she had to Hopper and Eleven. 

One continued to ask the wall questions but it had stopped responding. She screamed at it until her lungs were dry and her voice was almost entirely gone, but the stupid lights still didn't blink. They had stopped answering. 

One continued to lay on the floor in a daze as an indeterminate amount of time went by. It could have been minutes, it could have been hours, One was too tired to care. She didn't get to just lay down very often. She had been running for as long as she had known. 

During her time on the floor One decided that her next best course of action was to warn her new friends. She obviously didn't know the specifics of the message she had just received, but she sensed danger was getting closer and the only people who would listen was them. 

The clock on the wall said it was only noon, and while One didn't actually know what time school got done she thought it was probably safe to wait to go anywhere until three. For now, she would just continue to lie on the floor.

~~~

Once the ticking hands officially spun to three o'clock on the dot, One found her mobility and pushed herself off the ground and to her feet. There was an indent in the carpet where she had been lying that was so deep she wondered if it'd be permanent.

One had made it as far as the top step of the porch before she realized that she had no idea where she was going. In fact, she didn't even really know where she was. She'd have to travel via portal.

One remembered Joyce telling Jonathan that Will would be at Mike's after school and tried her hardest to envision Mike's house. However, it didn't take her long to realize she hadn't been paying enough attention to the Wheeler household when they dropped Mike off. She was too distracted by the thought of belonging to something. No clear picture, no portal.

She needed a new plan. Joyce and Jonathan still weren't home yet so they couldn't give her a ride...ride...ride! Steve had given them a ride to Mike's house! Steve would know how to get there, and she knew how to get to him.

She didn't want to alarm anyone by appearing out of nowhere so she envisioned the cement hallway behind Scoops Ahoy and waited for the whirring circle to grow to full size before stepping through it. Once she was back in the familiar hallway, she pushed through the door and found herself in the back room of the ice cream shop. She also found that she wasn't alone.

"Um...hi," Robin said mid-lick of an ice cream cone with her Converses kicked up on a table. "Can I help you...?"

"Steve," One replied with a straight face.

Without breaking eye contact Robin yelled, "Hey dingus!"

"What do you want, Robin? I'm trying to work out here!" Steve whined as his head popped through the door.

"If that's what you wanna call it..." Robin mumbled before she continued away at her ice cream cone.

Steve was about to respond when his eyes glanced over and found One. He pushed the rest of his body through the door at lightning speed and furiously began patting and smoothing his hair over. "Um Robin, you want to..."

Steve didn't have to finish his sentence for Robin to understand what he wanted. After a dramatic lick of ice cream, she rolled her eyes and jumped to her feet. "Fine, but you owe me for cutting my break short!"

Once she had exited the room and slammed the door behind her, Steve returned his attention to One. "For what do I owe the pleasure?" A cheesy smile spread across his face but One didn't take note of it.

"I need you to take me to Mike's," One answered. "Please."

"I thought you could make portals, isn't it easier and faster for you to get there yourself?" Steve asked. His smile dropped and his cheeks flushed bright red when he realized how crass that sounded. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

One just shook her head to signal her forgiveness. "Can you take me?"

"Well, I mean, I'm supposed to be working until sev—hey Robin!" Steve changed course halfway through his sentence when he realized that getting to hang out with a cute girl was way more important to him than working. 

"What!" Robin's annoyed voice yelled back from the other side.

"Cover for me!" Steve didn't even give Robin the chance to respond as he grabbed his coat and keys from a locker and began to make his way out of the back room. "Follow me."

"I'm going to kill you, Harrington!" Robin shouted after them as Steve grabbed One's hand and rushed them past the long line of customers. 

One's face turned red when she looked down to see her hand intertwined in his. She hadn't had this much physical contact with another person in a _long_ time. She wasn't sure if she liked it or not, but she didn't have time to make that decision because Steve still had a death-like grip on her hand and was weaving them through the crowded mall at 120 miles per hour. 

They finally slowed down when they made it to the front entrance of Starcourt and One took the opportunity to yank her hand from his.

"Sorry," Steve apologized with a sheepish shrug. They walked quietly but quickly to his car. 

"So what's the urgency?" Steve asked after they had begun their drive. He was always terrible with silence. "Why do you need to get to Mike's so bad?"

Like with before, One felt hesitant to tell him anything but she did feel like she owed him for appearing at his work without notice and demanding a ride. "Something is coming," she replied. 

Steve's eyes broke from the road before him to look at her with a mix of fear and confusion. "What is it?"

"I don't know," One answered.

"Good? Bad?" Steve asked anxiously. The slight tremor in her voice was making him nervous.

"I don't know," One repeated as she stared down at her lap. She really wished she had more answers. Stupid lights.

"Hey, well we've taken down big bad monsters in the past. We can handle whatever this is," Steve said. He placed a hand on hers and looked into her eyes in an attempt to comfort her. He didn't want to admit that it was also to comfort him.

The touch of Steve's skin against hers evoked a strange feeling again, a feeling she couldn't understand. Her first response with things she didn't understand was usually to distance herself from them, but in this moment she didn't pull away. Not right away, at least.

"We're here," Steve announced, pulling up into the Wheeler's driveway. One looked at him in confusion when he turned the ignition off and reached to open his door. "What? I'm a part of the party too, you know,” Steve responded when he caught her strange stare.

One's glance lingered for a moment before she accepted it and moved on. She had more pressing matters to attend to. _Something was coming._


	14. Doctor Who

**NOVEMBER 18, 1973**

The clicking of shoes echoed down the hallway outside of One's room. She listened to them eagerly with her ear pressed to her door and willed them to stop when they reached her. _Click, click, click. Silence._

One could feel her heart beat in her throat as she anxiously awaited the next noise. Ever since she had failed to reopen another time-transcending portal Papa had started visiting less. They made her try a few more times after that but eventually Papa had given up.

The last time she saw him was two months ago when they used her to plant a spy at a Russian government facility. He had stood behind glass the entire time and didn't speak a word to her. Pangs of pain reverberated in her heart with each beat as she recalled the memory.

_Click, click, click._

One's ears perked when they picked up the new sound. The shoes had started walking again but now they were moving farther away from her. Papa wasn't coming for her.

One fell against the door and let out a defeated cry. Her cheeks drowned in wet sobs as a waterfall of tears cascaded from her face to the floor. She had never felt so alone. Papa was the only family she knew and he had abandoned her.

 _No, she couldn't think like that._ Papa still loved her and cared about her, he was probably just busy. She had heard more children lately, that must be why he wasn't visiting. She would prove that he was still her Papa!

One turned to face the door and stared at a scuff by the door knob. She tuned all her concentration in on Papa as she pictured his face. Her fists subconsciously clenched as she strained to open a portal to him, but at last she did it.

"Papa!" One cried excitedly at the sight of him. He wore a look of surprise at the sound of her voice.

"Leave me be, One!" he growled, looking away from the portal to turn his focus back to something out of frame.

"Papa?" One asked in hurt confusion. Didn't he love her? Why was his voice so rough?

"Who is that, Papa?" another voice asked. It sounded like a young boy, maybe about her age. It must have been one of the other children. 

"Nobody," Dr. Brenner sighed. He gave One a sharp glare as an indication to close the portal. One's lip quivered and she took several deep breaths to hold back her sobs, but she obeyed his command. Once the portal was shut she let the tears break free again.

There was her proof. She was abandoned. She was alone.

~~~

"Who is that, Papa?"

"Nobody."

The boy studied Dr. Brenner's features as he stared into a strange black void that had opened between them. The boy couldn't see anything but he could tell that whoever was on the other side was a kid like him.

"Let's continue," Dr. Brenner said with a smile once the strange anomaly disappeared. The boy was taken aback by how quickly Dr. Brenner's expression shifted. It was like nothing had even happened.

"Yes, Papa," the boy nodded his head.

"Good boy, Seven."

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

"I know, I know, I'm here. No need to get all excited," Steve announced as he hopped down the stairs to Mike's basement. One followed after him, but a little less dramatically.

"Steve!" Dustin yelled, jumping to his feet at the sight of him.

"One!" Eleven called out with a smile on her face. She was relieved to see her sister again. One met her eyes for a brief moment and flashed a quick smile. She was still ashamed about what had happened.

"What are you guys doing here?" Mike asked curiously. They were in the middle of a D&D session and they had just started a new campaign to teach Eleven and Max how to play.

"She's got a dire warning for you guys or something," Steve responded casually, stepping aside to give One the floor. All eyes were immediately on her.

"Coming," One said quietly, finding a voice she didn't realize she had lost. "Something's coming."

"What is it?" Eleven asked, slowly standing and taking a few steps towards One.

"I don't know..." One looked down as Eleven approached her. "But it's coming from the Upside Down."

"Dammit not again," Dustin muttered. "We just got rid of the last one!"

"Did it say when?" Max asked. One just shook her head.

"How do you know something is coming?" Will asked next. One's cheeks flushed bright red and she found it hard to meet his eyes. She had forgotten to leave a note for Joyce about the demolition she had done to the wall...

"Um, the lights told me..." One answered quickly, rubbing the back of her neck. Everyone except Max shared a collective look. Apparently they knew what she meant. "Sorry."

"So what are we going to do?" Lucas wondered aloud now. "We don't know what's coming or even when. Are we just supposed to wait until something bad happens?"

"Can you open a portal to the Upside Down and see what's coming?" Mike asked One. One quickly shook her head no.

"That might be what it wants," One explained. "I don't want to repeat...previous events..." One's eyes glanced over to Eleven for brief second. She looked down at the precise moment Eleven looked up.

"Well, we don't know who or what it is," Max pointed out. "It might not even be bad."

"It's the Upside Down," reminded Lucas. "Everything is bad."

"There might be another way..." One offered. Everyone's ears shot up and their full attention was once more on her. "I was only able to do this once though..."

"What is it?" Steve asked, rejoining the conversation. He had been leaning against the railing while he listened to his children negotiate matters.

"A long time ago I was able to open a portal," One began before taking a deep breath. "into a different point in time." She was met with the dropped jaws of her audience. 

"No. Fucking. Way," Dustin gasped. "She's fucking Doctor Who you guys!"

"So you can look into next week and see if we're all demogorgon chow?" Steve asked. 

"It doesn't work quite like that..." One clarified. "I have to focus on someone specifically and find them in their timeline, but theoretically, yes."

"So theoretically we'll be demogorgon chow..." Max said.

"But theoretically we'll see what's coming," Mike argued. His look transferred from Max to One. "I think you should try it."

One agreed with him but she was hesitant to say so just yet. Heavy expectations weighed on her shoulders. She wasn't even sure if she could do it! Her regular portals weren't even cooperating with her. But then she looked at Eleven. 

Eleven's face wore confidence; confident gaze, confident smile. She believed in One. And that's all that One needed. After taking a deep breath, she pushed her worrying thoughts away and stood tall. "Okay, I can try."

"How can we help?" Mike asked, rising to his feet. The rest of the party followed his lead. 

"Like I said, I need to focus on a person, so I need a volunteer," One explained. 

Steve pushed himself off the railing and took a step forward. "I'll be your volunteer," he offered, raising a finger and then pointing it at himself.

"Okay, just stand there and be quiet so I can focus," One instructed him. 

"You got it, boss," Steve confirmed. He pretended to zip his lips and throw away the key before freezing his body in place. One zeroed her stare in on him and began to focus.

"That might be difficult for him," Dustin snickered to Lucas and Max, who in turn laughed with him.

"I heard that, Henderson!" Steve growled, breaking his statuesque pose along with One's concentration.

"Guys, please!" One snapped. She needed absolute silence if this even stood a _chance_ of working. Steve, Dustin, Max, and Lucas all collectively apologized and One returned to work.

One attempted to focus on his features again to call forth a portal but she found herself staring at him for other reasons... _His dark brown eyes. His corny smile. His stupidly good-looking hair..._ She quickly shook these thoughts out of her head and started over.

_Okay, you can do this._

_His dark brown eyes. His thin nose. His square jaw._

She repeated these thoughts over and over in her head like a mantra. She put everything into it and concentrated like she never had before. She needed this to work. She needed to know that her friends would be safe.

_His dark brown eyes. His thin nose. His square jaw. His..._

_Portal._

A surprised smile spread across her face as a small portal opened up right in front of her. The rest of the group gasped in shock and strained their necks to see but since she was facing towards them the portal opened to her and only she could see what was in it. 

"Well, what do you see?" Steve asked anxiously. He had his fingers crossed behind his back and was repeating " _Please don't be demogorgon chow, please don't be demogorgon chow,_ ” over and over in his head.

One's face turned bright red at the scene that played out before her. She had found Steve, but she had also found herself. The two were together, and they were kissing...

"Nothing important!" One answered in a fluster. She tried to wipe the redness out of her cheeks but she just made it worse. Thankfully the portal was small and out of their future selves' line of sight so they didn't see her. "You're alive."

"That seems pretty important to me..." Steve muttered, a bit offended. 

"So if Steve is still alive next week, that means we all probably will be too, right?" Lucas asked hopefully. 

"I don't know if this _is_ next week," One confessed, bringing her voice to a whisper in case it carried through the portal. Future Steve and Future One hadn't appeared to have heard them but she wanted to play it safe. "I don't know how to find a specific time, just a specific person. But Steve doesn't look any older so I think we can assume that this takes place within the next year."

"Do you see anything else?" Eleven asked. 

One forced herself to look back at the portal and was relieved to see that the make out session was done. Now that she felt comfortable enough to stare through the portal for more than two seconds she began to notice other details. 

Future her and Future Steve were sitting on a couch in what looked like Hopper's cabin. They were holding hands so tightly that their knuckles were white. A low rumbling sound began to shake the cabin and emanate through the portal. As time passed it got louder and the rest of her party began to pick up on it.

"Um, what is that?" Max asked nervously. One met her with a look of fear. Future One and Future Steve were becoming visibly more terrified as the walls around them began to shake so much that they were almost vibrating.

"I-I don't know," One replied. The party all rushed to see through the portal for themselves, nearly crowding One out of sight. 

"Wait, is that you and Steve at Hopper's cabin?" Dustin asked. Dustin didn't get a confirmation to his question because in that moment Future One's face overtook their view.

"Coming," Future One warned, staring straight into the eyes of her younger self. Everybody except One shot backwards from the jump-scare. Even though this version of herself didn't look older, her eyes were different. Changed. _Ancient._

"I know!" One replied in frustration. "But _what_ is coming?"

"Not what, _who_ ," Future Steve corrected her as he entered the frame. Despite the situation, present Steve couldn't help but smile and look to his friends when he saw his future self. He felt like a celebrity. The rest of the party was less enthused.

"Who then?" One asked again, growing impatient. She didn't know how much longer she could hold the portal open for and the increasing closeness of the rumbling was scaring her.

Future One dominated the portal again and took a deep sigh. The rumbling was now almost as loud as a jet plane and the party found themselves having to cover their ears from it. Future One opened her mouth to answer but they couldn't hear her response.

"WHAT?" One yelled over the noise. Her future counterpart's mouth moved again but the second it closed she disappeared from view.

One word escaped the portal as the mysterious rumbling overtook the cabin and shook the portal shut:

"PAPA!"


	15. Three Paths

**OCTOBER 31, 1975**

Papa had stopped visiting altogether. One couldn't even remember the last time she had left her room. She was starved for human contact. She was also physically starved. She didn't care about food anymore. She only got excited during meals because it meant for a brief moment that her door would open and she would get to see another human being.

But today would be different.

One waited patiently by the door for her dinner. They fed her twice a day at the same time without fail, and as such her body had developed an internal clock. Rather than feeling it in her stomach when it was meal time, she felt it in her gut. 

The door clicked open and swung back to reveal a surprise. One of three people usually brought her her meal, and she knew every detail about them. She could trace their faces in the air with her eyes closed. But this person was new. 

One stared at the new person inquisitively, trying to process the change in her head, but it was hard since everything had been the same for so long. "They needed Joey elsewhere," the woman explained, reading her confused look. Another change: she talked. They never talked. They just threw the tray on the ground and slammed the door. 

"Joey," One mouthed, feeling the name in her mouth. It had been so long since she last talked that she had almost forgotten what her voice sounded like. The woman didn't respond but she continued to linger outside her door. One wasn't sure what she was waiting for but she wasn't going to question it because this was more human contact than she had had in a long time. 

At that moment One could hear two more sets of foot steps come down the hallway; the heavy step of an adult and the lighter footfalls of a child. The woman turned to look at who was coming and opened a larger window for One to see through. 

A guard was walking down the hallway accompanied by a boy that looked about her age. He had untamed dark hair and a complexion riddled with freckles. Almost instantaneously, his dark eyes met hers, and she had a strange feeling that they had met before. Although, perhaps not directly. 

"Come along, number Seven." the guard put a firm hand on the boy's shoulder and pushed him ahead. One's eyes remained glued on him the entire way, and for some reason she couldn't shake the feeling that encapsulated her when they made eye contact. One continued to stare at him until the woman shut the door in her face, but even then her gaze didn't move from its spot. 

"Seven," she whispered.

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

The party sat in their own silence for several minutes after the portal snapped shut, each of them unsure of what to do or say next.

"But that's impossible, Dr. Brenner is dead," Mike said after he could no longer take the unnerving quiet. "He was eaten by the Demogorgon!"

"No," Eleven said quietly. "The man said he was alive. The man that Eight and I..." Eleven couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence as she relived the terrible memory.

"Eight? More of us escaped?" One asked hopefully. Eleven nodded her head and triggered a relieved smile on One's face. That smile disappeared quickly when she remembered the other bit of recent news. "But the message came from the Upside Down, so that means Papa..."

"Yes," Eleven agreed solemnly. The relief they had held at never having to see that terrible man again quickly dispersed and was replaced with a deep dread that spread through their bodies. "He's in the Upside Down."

"So the Demogorgon took him back to the Upside Down, like it did with Will and Barb," Dustin said.

"Um, are we not going to talk about whatever Future Me and Future One were hiding from? Why was it just us two?" Steve asked impatiently, trying to hide his ulterior movies. While he was definitely worried about whatever was making that dreadful noise in the portal he had secretly brought it up just so he could address the fact that him and One had been alone together in the cabin. He had his own hopes for the reason why...

"Yeah, what was that?" Lucas asked. "A new monster?"

"I don't know," One answered. The party didn't get much time to deliberate further when the sound of the basement door opening interrupted them.

"There you are," Hopper's voice echoed into the basement as the heavy clomps of his feet made their way down the stairs. Joyce's lighter footfalls followed behind.

"Hopper," One greeted him in surprise.

"You want to explain to me where you disappeared to last n—,"

"What was the message?" Joyce cut Hopper off with her own question before he could finish his. Hopper's mustache furrowed angrily at the interruption.

"C-coming," One stammered, taken aback by the abruptness of the question.

"Who was the message from?" Joyce put her hands on One's arms and stared determinedly into her eyes. 

"W-we don't know..." One strained her eyes to look back to her friends for support. She couldn't tell if Joyce was angry with her about the wall or not.

"Who or what is coming?" Hopper asked, stepping beside Joyce.

Finally able to turn her neck, One shared a look with Eleven. "Papa," they said together.

Hopper immediately covered his face with his hand and turned away. A muffled "Jesus" came from his mouth. Hopper paced a few moments before speaking again, "When?"

"We also don't know that," Eleven took over for One.

"Is there anything else you want to tell us?" Hopper's eyes landed on One as he said this and she shrunk back in shame. She assumed he was insinuating Joyce's wall.

"No," Eleven said determinedly as she locked eyes with her father. After a few moments of intense staring Hopper put his hands up and backed down.

"Alright, well whatever you kids are up to is going to have to wait. You're all going home to your respective families," Hopper instructed. " _Now._ "

"B-but," Dustin tried to argue but Hopper wouldn't have it.

"I'm sorry, do I need to repeat myself? There's a psychopathic maniac on his way so _get_ a _move_ on."

"You don't need to be so harsh, Hop," Joyce muttered, although she did agree with him. If Dr. Brenner was coming back that only meant bad things. She needed to keep Will, Jonathan, and now One, safe. "Will, One, come along."

Will whined as he begrudgingly stood to meet his mother, but One remained glued to her spot in shock. Joyce had asked her about the message so she had to have seen the wall. Yet she still wanted One to stay with them?

"It's okay, sweetie, I'm not mad about the wall," Joyce assured her. One had uncovered a warning about a lurking danger and that was much more important than her new wallpaper.

Once she felt confident that Joyce was telling the truth, One slowly followed after Joyce and Will up the stairs and to their car. On the way she caught eyes with Steve and blushed a bit as she recalled what she had seen in the portal. She wanted to look down but she felt drawn in when he flashed her an understanding smile. She had a strong feeling that she would see Steve Harrington again soon.

"Do any of the rest of you need rides?" Hopper asked before he set up the stairs with a very grumpy Eleven. They weren't in imminent danger, she wanted to stay!

"I've got them, Chief," Steve answered, nodding at Lucas, Dustin, and Max. "Let's go, rugrats."

~~~

"So you and One, huh?" Dustin asked knowingly the second the car door closed after dropping off Lucas. He had been waiting anxiously to drill Steve on his love life the entire car ride and now they were finally alone. Steve's face instantly turned red.

"I don't know what you're talking about..." Steve tried to wave aside Dustin's insinuations but he only succeeded in making himself look more guilty.

"Come on, I saw what you tried to do in there," Dustin smiled knowingly. "Plus the way you kept glancing over at her."

"Come on, Henderson, you're being crazy," Steve scoffed. "You're just making stuff up in your head."

"Just admit that you like her!" Dustin aggressively prodded Steve in his arm making the car turn slightly. When he didn't get a response he decided to try a different approach. "If you're not going to go after her maybe I will."

"She's way too old for you," Steve scoffed, rubbing the spot where Dustin jabbed him. "She needs someone more mature...and with better hair." Steve ruffled Dustin's curly mop with his free hand.

"Like you?" Dustin raised his brows and rolled his tongue.

Steve looked back and forth between Dustin and the road several times before a growing smile gave him away. "Maybe."

~~~

"Maybe."

"What was that, dear?" Joyce asked One, who was sitting in the back seat. One's answer to her question had been too quiet for her to hear.

"Maybe, I'd maybe get a job," One repeated herself a little louder.

"I think it'd be good for you, keep you occupied, especially while the kids are at school," Joyce smiled through the rearview mirror.

Joyce had turned her mind to the long-term; to thoughts of One becoming a permanent resident of Hawkins and maybe even the Byers' clan. One didn't know how to feel about this. This could be her chance at a normal life, but after everything she had been through could she adjust to normality?

As if a cruel joke to answer her question, Will's eyes rolled back and he began to violently seize in the seat next to her. One watched in terror, unsure how to help as Joyce swerved and pulled the vehicle over.

"Will! Will!" Joyce cried, throwing open his door and reaching inside for him. "Honey, what's going on?"

The only response Joyce got from Will was the end of his convulsions. A small sense of relief tried to make its way through One's body but was stopped at the sight of Will's eyes: she could still only see the whites.

One leaned in closer to listen for his breathing and was immediately met with his hands around her neck. She gasped as she tried to pry his fingers off but he had an impossibly strong grip on her neck.

The last thing she heard before succumbing to the darkness was Joyce's shriek: "Will, let her go!"

~~~

"You let her go," Eleven's frustrated voice broke the silence enveloping the car.

"Who?" Hopper asked in confusion.

"One!" Eleven raised her voice, slapping her hands against her legs and turning to face Hopper.

"She's staying with the Byers'," Hopper said. "She has a home."

"Not our home," Eleven sulked, looking away out the window and crossing her arms. She watched the dull white scenery buzz past the car as they drove on a lonely stretch of road.

"You know why she can't stay with us. It's not safe." Hopper tightly pressed his mouth together in a way that conveyed he wasn't going to argue it further.

"She can control it!" Eleven argued, ignoring the firm line where his mouth used to be. "She used it to see the future!"

"Hold on, _what?_ " Hopper slammed on the brakes so hard that smoke fumed from all four tires.

"That's how we found out Papa was coming." Eleven purposely didn't correct herself. The slight wince in Hopper's eye fed her hungry anger.

Once he had gotten past the sting of what Eleven had said, he pressed on with the conversation. "What else did she see in the future?" 

"Her...and Steve...at home..." Eleven strained her memory to recall what she had seen in the portal, but things became clearer the more she focused. 

"At home? You mean the cabin?" 

"Yes," Eleven nodded before continuing. "Loud noise...and..." Eleven stopped suddenly when Hopper moved his sleeve back to itch his arm and the bright blue of the hair tie around his wrist caught her eye. Eleven touched the hair tie and triggered a memory of something else that was in the portal...a detail she had initially missed...

"And what?" Hopper pressed.

"Sarah's hair tie," Eleven gasped. She had been so distracted by the mysterious noise and the message Future One gave them to recognize it sooner but she _had_ seen it. It was there. "One was wearing it."


	16. New Friends

**NOVEMBER 7, 1975**

"Seven?" One called out quietly through the portal as she cautiously peered into the room before her.

After seeing that boy in the hallway the week previous she had been determined to see him again. Through loneliness or something else, it was hard to say, but all week she had been trying to summon a portal to him. And at last it had worked.

She wasn't quite sure what she'd find since the last time she summoned a portal to someone instead of someplace it was in the future, but she had been determined to try nonetheless. She had focused on him in that hallway. In the Lab. In the now.

"Who are you?" a small voice answered back. It sounded like the voice she had heard that time she opened a portal to Papa. The strange accent resonated in her memories. She had been right, she had met Seven before.

"My name is One," One responded. "I saw you passing in the hallway last week."

"I remember you," Seven said after a few moments of thought. The two stared curiously at each other for a few moments before Seven spoke again. "So you can open portals? That's your power?"

"Yes, what's yours?" One asked eagerly. The moment she asked, a weird feeling began to creep up her spine and suddenly she found herself climbing through the portal and into Seven's room. Why had she done that? What if someone came in and found her? She turned to go back through the portal but was surprised to find that she had closed it. She didn't even remember doing it...

"That's my power," Seven said once One's bewildered eyes once again met his. He wiped a streak of blood from his nose.

"You...you made me do that?" One took a step back from Seven as he slowly nodded his head. A shiver shot up her spine and for a second she was scared that it was from him controlling her again. Could she trust this boy?

"Sorry, I don't mean to frighten you," Seven said after noticing her discomfort. "I promise I won't do it again."

A long breath exhaled from One's nose as she cautiously reclaimed the step she had taken backwards. He sounded sincere enough but something lurked in his eyes, something that she couldn't quite pinpoint. She decided to afford him some trust, but she would still remain on guard.

"I haven't seen another kid here before you," Seven struck up a new conversation as he began to pace the room. "I've heard them, but I haven't seen them."

"I also haven't seen any. Well, except for a baby, but that was a long time ago," One admitted.

"A baby?" Seven asked incredulously. One just nodded her head. "How long have you been here?"

"I've been here for..." One started her response out confidently but then faltered when she realized that she didn't actually know the answer. "I don't know."

"Where did you come from, before this?"

"Before this?" One's nose crinkled in confusion as she tried to recall her life before the Lab. Had she had a life before the Lab?

Time had begun to blend together as of late, and she had a hard time differentiating the beginning and the end. Had there even been a beginning? Would there be an end?

A headache ensued as she tried to understand the nothingness that her memory brought forwards. All she remembered was Papa and the Lab, although something within her told there had been something else before that. What though, she had no idea.

"You don't remember?" Seven asked in disbelief.

"No," One shook her head. "Do you?"

"Neither do I," Seven admitted glumly. He sat at the edge of his bed in defeat and cradled his head in his hands. He looked so weak, so vulnerable. Something told One to sit beside him, but it wasn't Seven, it was her own intuition. She did this of her own accord. 

"I was hoping you could help me remember, but now I see that it's hopeless because you can't even remember. I have nothing," Seven sobbed. 

"That's not true," One said, gently placing a hand on his back. Both initially jumped from the touch but settled into it after the shock wore off. Physical contact was a stranger to them. "You have me."

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

When One came to she found herself on the faded couch in the Byers' living room. She looked up to see the lights and letters above her head and took a deep breath, but the deep breath ignited a fierce pain in her throat and she grabbed at her neck to make it stop. What had happened?

"Are you okay?" One turned her head to see Joyce rushing towards her from the kitchen with a glass of water.

"What happened? I don't remember anything..." One's voice came out as a hoarse whisper. It even hurt to talk. One slowly pushed herself into a sitting position with Joyce guiding her and took a few sips from the glass.

Joyce didn't respond but rather looked over her shoulder to Will who was peering out from behind the wall. "Come here, sweetie. It's okay." 

Will cautiously approached the pair, a look of remorse scrawled on his face. And were those...tears? Built up in the corners of his eyes? One had to blink several times to make sure she was seeing everything correctly. _What had happened?_

"I'm sorry." Will broke down the second the words came out of his mouth. He fell into Joyce and she cradled him against her.

"It's...okay..." One said reluctantly. She was still confused. 

"Something overtook Will during the car ride and made him hurt you. Made him choke you," Joyce began to explain. One reached up to feel her neck again. _That explained the pain._ "It almost killed you, but right before it could Will broke through and let go. He was so strong." Joyce smiled and brushed through Will's hair with her fingers.

One stared at Will curiously. The longer she stared the more she started to remember bits and pieces. Most vividly, she remembered Will's eyes; rolled back and completely white. 

"I don't know what it was." Will's whisper cut through the silence once he caught his breath. "It wasn't like the Mind Flayer, it felt different."

"The 'Mind Flayer'?" One asked. More of those weird words they used.

"It's the King Monster of the Upside Down," Will explained. "It controls all the other monsters and everything it infects. At one point it controlled me, but we got rid of it." 

"I'm not familiar..." One replied. In her seven years of running around the Upside Down she had never come across a monster like that. It sounded horrifying. 

One's response confused Will. The Mind Flayer was a ginormous monster after all, how could she not have seen it? But before he could question it Joyce intervened. "What was it like, honey? Can you describe it?"

"I didn't even realize what I was doing until it was almost too late..." Will trailed off as he tried to describe the experience. A strange dizziness settled upon One. Something familiar resounded in those words and set off flashbacks from the Lab. With eyes ablaze, One shot to her feet, catching Joyce and Will off guard.

"Was there a weird feeling in your spine before it happened?" One immediately asked, looking down at Will. 

"Y-yes..." Will stammered, still alarmed from One's sudden movement. 

One's chest began to heave so hard that she couldn't tell what was louder; the beating of her heart or the pumping of her lungs. They were both drowning each other out. A swarm of thoughts went racing through her mind but she could only make out one of them: _Seven._


	17. The Lonely Sheriff

**AUGUST 13, 1976**

One and Seven's face-to-face had led to a fated friendship. The two were all each other had, and as the months wore on they would spend any spare time they had peering at each other through a portal. Which had become more plentiful for both as of late, since Dr. Brenner's attention had shifted to other subjects.

They had stopped physically visiting each other's rooms after Dr. Brenner had nearly walked in on them once. One had amassed a variety of bruises from flinging herself back through the portal and onto her hard linoleum floor. Being able to see and speak to each other was enough for them.

Having nothing to do other than talk, their conversations stretched through the entirety of their knowledge about the world. Which wasn't much, but they were both rather creative and didn't have much trouble filling in the blanks.

They would talk about their abilities, the other kids, life outside the Lab, their hypothetical families and friends...

Lately their conversation had turned to something more fantastical: escape. They spent several days jokingly strategizing about the crazy ways they would break out of the Lab. Or at least it was all a joke to One.

Most of their plans obviously included using One's portal-making abilities, but Seven had also begun to throw his mind-controlling abilities into the gambit.

_"Wouldn't it be so much more satisfying if they made Papa release every single one of them?"_

_"Wouldn't it feel good to watch Papa lock himself into one of their rooms for eternity?"_

_"Wouldn't they experience an unrelenting relief at watching Papa hurt himself?"_

One laughed along uncomfortably whenever Seven made these remarks, but lately she was beginning to wonder if he meant them. They couldn't actually escape. Where would they go? How would they survive? One figured herself to be 12-13, and Seven seemed to be about the same age as her. She had no recollection of the outside world but she didn't think two kids could make it on their own. Papa had said it was dangerous out there.

"I just want to know," Seven sighed through the portal. They had been engrossed in a conversation about animals. Somehow they both had memories of squirrels, birds, deer, and other forest-creatures even though they couldn't remember ever being outside.

"What?" One asked, noticing a serious shift in Seven's features.

"What our lives were like before..." Seven began. "We can picture animals we can't remember ever seeing, we know about music and movies even though Papa has never shown them to us...so why can't we remember what happened before the Lab?"

"I don't know..." One answered softly. She wanted to know too, but she didn't dwell on it as much as Seven did because it just resulted in more pain.

"Papa can't be our real papa. I have family out there," Seven bit his lip to stifle frustrated tears. "I know it. And I bet you do too."

One became speechless. Her having a family? It seemed ridiculous. Maybe Papa wasn't their real father but he was the only family they had. A hunch was not enough evidence that there were people out there waiting for them who cared and loved for them.

But did those people actually love and care for them? If One and Seven really did have families out there, why hadn't they come looking for them? Why had One and Seven spent so many years abused and abandoned in the Lab? If her family actually existed, she didn't know if that was a family she even wanted to go back to.

"Stop," One quietly commanded, tears welling in the corners of her eyes. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Seven looked at her dumbfounded. "Maybe I don't, but I'm not just going to sit here and let them continue to torture me! I'm getting out of here, I promise you that!"

One felt a tingling down her back and within seconds the portal snapped shut. In his anger, Seven had used his powers to make her shut the portal. The conversation was over.

One sighed as she sat down on her bed. Maybe she'd get out of there too. One day.

~~~

**JANUARY 9, 1985**

"She had Sarah's hair tie?" Hopper asked incredulously. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Why?"

"I don't know," Eleven answered.

"You said she was at our cabin, she probably stole it!" Hopper slammed his hands against the steering wheel. He knew he couldn't trust her.

"Maybe you gave it to her," Eleven offered.

"Why would I do that?" Hopper snapped before calming himself down. The startled look on Eleven's face softened his features. "Sorry."

Eleven nodded her head to accept his apology. "It hasn't happened yet, we don't know anything for certain."

"You're right," Hopper sighed. "You're right. There's just something strange about her that puts me off-balance. I don't know what it is."

Eleven stared into his eyes and shrugged. She didn't want to admit it, but she got the same vibe from One. There was something secretive about her. Some big mystery lurking under the surface. But she was her sister, so she looked past it.

"What do you want for dinner, kiddo?" Hopper asked as he put the car back into drive and continued their journey home.

Eleven just smiled a knowing smile. "Eggos."

~~~

When they arrived back at the cabin Hopper set to work on dinner while Eleven got the TV ready. They were going to have a night full of Eggos and Old Western movies to cut through the craziness that had ensued in the last 24 hours.

"You brought a stranger with supernatural powers to our house where she opened a portal to the Upside Down and nearly killed us...After which she ran away to the Byers' and talked to the lights who told her something was coming...She then tracked you all down to relay the message and opened a portal to the future where her future self told you Dr. Brenner is coming back..." Hopper summed up as he grabbed the Eggos from the freezer and set them out to thaw. "Am I missing anything?"

Eleven shook her head no from the living room.

"Yeah, we could use a night in," Hopper sighed into the open freezer.

"We haven't seen this one yet." Eleven waved a VHS above her head from where she was kneeling on the ground; an island in the middle of a vast sea of cowboy hats and lassoes.

"Throw it in," Hopper told her, yanking his hand back and waving it frantically after trying to grab the burning Eggos out of the toaster.

Eleven sprawled out on the couch, and after Hopper had regained the courage to touch the white-hot waffles, he joined Eleven in the living room and claimed his spot in his rightful throne: the recliner. Together, the two faded into the cheesy one-liners and gaudy special effects of their chosen Western: _The Lonely Sheriff._

The title felt a little taunting but Hopper let it slide.

Yet even with the distraction of cowboys and waffles, thoughts of One still infiltrated Hopper's mind. Why _did_ she have Sarah's hair tie?

If Eleven was right and Hopper did give it to her, it'd have to be something short of a miracle. Because the _only_ reason Hopper would give One that hair tie was if somehow magically she was Sarah.

And that just wasn't possible.

Sarah was dead.


	18. The Escape - Part 1

**JANUARY 15, 1977**

The day started out normal. Or, what One knew to be normal from her life in the Lab.

One hummed a song she made up to herself as she paced around her room in boredom. She was waiting for the right time to open a portal to Seven. She had just finished her meal and was sure that he would be done soon as well. Like always, she was eager to talk to her friend.

Discussion of escaping had slowly ceased since their big argument several months back, but One sensed that there was still an angry desire burning within Seven's spirit to get out of the Lab. There was a small ping of fear in her gut every time she opened a portal to him that he wouldn't be waiting on the other side. But accompanying that small ping of fear was a small ping of hope that he'd gotten out and found the family that he kept dreaming of. 

Today would be different. Today the fear would be real. 

When she was confident that the appropriate amount of time had passed, One concentrated on the white wall before her and summoned a whizzing portal to Seven's room. With an excited smile plastered to her face she eagerly peered through the portal for her friend, but what she found instead was a nightmare.

"Calm yourself, Seven," Dr. Brenner hushed Seven's thrashing body as several guards held him down. Light shone off a large syringe in Dr. Brenner's hand as he brought it closer to Seven's neck. "This will help you forget."

One stood petrified in her spot, unsure of how to help. She was no match against Papa and all those guards. _Come on, Seven!_ she urged. _Use your powers!_

When the syringe was only centimeters from Seven's neck, Dr. Brenner's hand paused. Dr. Brenner looked surprised and angry to find that he couldn't move his hand any closer. It shook as he fought to regain control over it, but it was a losing battle. Slowly the needle began to move in the opposite direction. 

Dr. Brenner's eyes opened fearfully wide as Seven made him bring the syringe closer and closer to his own neck. Dr. Brenner was just about to inject himself when One noticed something in the hands of one of the guards behind Seven.

"Seven, watch out!" One screamed through the portal but she was too late. The guard stabbed a similar syringe into Seven's neck and One watched in fear as Seven's eyes rolled back into his head and his body slumped against the guards who were holding him. 

With Seven now unconscious, Dr. Brenner was free from his control and turned to glare at One through the portal. "One," he growled as she quickly shut the portal. 

One was so bewildered from the scene that she had just witnessed that she backed into a wall and fell to the floor. So many thoughts were racing through her mind that she couldn't even function.

_Was Seven okay?_

_Were they coming for her?_

_What was she going to do?_

Her thoughts flashed back to the syringe Seven had been injected with. What was in it? Papa had said it would help him forget...Was that why One and Seven couldn't remember their previous lives? Because Papa had been injecting them with some sort of amnesia poison?

_She had to get out of there._

She turned to face the wall to open a portal but concentration was nearly impossible. The angry beehive of thoughts and fears swarming her mind made it too difficult to focus on the smudge she had found on the wall. 

_Click, click, click._

Her ears picked up on a parade of shoes stomping their way down the hallway towards her room. They were coming for her. _Come on, come on, come on!_

Think of trees. Think of the ocean. Think of mountains. _Just pick something and get out of there!_ One willed herself.

An image pushed forth from the back of One's mind of a large, open backyard with several trees and crisp colorful leaves on the ground. A man and a woman were also there, although their faces were blurry. The whole thing felt incredibly familiar but she couldn't tell if it was a memory or a fantasy. She didn't have time to.

_Click, click, click._

Focusing hard on the sudden image, One opened a portal to the mysterious place. It looked a little different since it was winter, but One didn't care. She had a way out.

She crawled through the portal, wedging the front half of her body into the idyllic scene before her. Her bare arms tingled from the cold snow but she was too focused on escape to notice.

Looking around at her new surroundings, she was once again overwhelmed with a sense of familiarity. A little brown house sat at the end of the yard coated in heavy blankets of snow. It looked empty, but vivid memories from the back of her brain gave it life. Had she been here before?

Her time to figure it out was cut short by a pair of hands latching onto her ankles. One screamed as she was ripped out of the portal and away from her freedom. The little brown house blinked goodbye as the portal snapped shut from the surprise. She had been so close.

The same hands that grabbed her ankles now grabbed her arms and aggressively pulled her to her feet. They pushed her forward making her stumble into somebody she had really been hoping to avoid: Papa.

"You've disappointed me, One," Dr. Brenner tutted. One scrambled back from him, but was mindful to keep a distance from the rough guards behind her.

"You made me forget!" One yelled at him, tears of anger and confusion slipping down her face. "How long have you been making me forget? How much have I forgotten?"

"There, there," Dr. Brenner said with a soothing voice. He reached out to wipe her tears but she jerked away before he could touch her. "We were only helping you."

"How?" One shouted, drawing the guards closer. In a fit of anger and fear at being rough-housed again, One subconsciously opened two portals beneath the guards' feet. She only heard their screams as they dropped into an unknown. Now it was just her and Papa.

Dr. Brenner didn't even flinch as his help was forcefully evacuated. He sighed like he had been keeping a great burden on his shoulders. "Your parents didn't want you," he began to explain. 

One nearly choked on her own tears as she took a step back in surprise. "What?" One's voice diminished to a whisper.

"They dropped you off at the Lab the moment you began exhibiting powers," Dr. Brenner continued. "They didn't want a freak for a daughter. So I took you under my wing. Cared for you, grew your abilities. And this is how you repay me? Insolence?"

"You-you're lying," One choked out. She could hardly see him through the wall of tears falling from her eyes.

Dr. Brenner slowly shook his head no and took a few steps towards her. "I'm afraid not."

One felt a weakness tear through her body and numb her to her core. She couldn't move. She couldn't feel. She couldn't think. Everything she feared was true. She had a family, but they had abandoned her. Her world was full of nothingness.

Dr. Brenner took advantage of the situation and wrapped his arms around her in a firm grip. In the moment she felt so hopeless, his grasp was too tight to break out of and she couldn't open a portal to escape because he'd go right with her. Unless...

One thought desperately of somewhere, anywhere else and hoped against hope that there'd be a fall. Something to jolt Dr. Brenner into letting go of her. The only image that came directly to her mind was the room where she cut Mr. Munson's arm in half. It'd have to do. One took a deep breath, summoned a portal, and waited for the fall.

Her portal thankfully hadn't failed her and the two dropped like weights onto the ground from five feet above. Dr. Brenner's grip loosened once they hit the floor and One took her opportunity to wriggle out of his arms. 

A small smile worked its way into the corner of her mouth at her cleverness. She had our-smarted Papa! However her genius was short-lived when she bolted for the door and threw it back to find a disappointing sight: she had inadvertently dropped herself at the same place she dropped the two guards. They smiled menacingly at her through the door frame with a gleam of revenge in their eyes.

One willed another portal but discovered pretty quickly that she was out of juice. Opening so many portals in such a short amount of time had burnt her out and now she faced the two angry guards powerless. 

"No more running," Dr. Brenner seethed as he pushed himself to his feet. He stumbled as he took a step forward and directed the guards to grab her. She winced as they crushed her arms with their snakelike grip. They were definitely squeezing harder than they needed to.

One tried her hardest to stand tall and keep a brave face as Dr. Brenner approached her. Even though inside her bones were rattling and her soul was shaking, she would show him that she wasn't afraid of him anymore. "I'm not scared of you," she said with a raised chin, but her trembling lip nearly gave her away.

A manic laugh escaped from Dr. Brenner's throat that sent chills not just through One's entire body, but through the entire room as well. "Just you wait."


	19. The Escape - Part 2

**JANUARY 15, 1977**

"Let me go!" One yelled, pushing and pulling against the restraints that held her. She was strapped from head to toe on a hard plastic bed with the two guards and Dr. Brenner looming over her.

"I don't think so," Dr. Brenner said with an unnerving calmness to his voice. "And in case you get any ideas again, the bed is posted to the walls. Portals won't get you anywhere."

One stretched her neck as far as it would go and let out a defeated sigh when she saw that Dr. Brenner was telling the truth. Plastic poles extended from each side of the bed to the cement walls surrounding her. Dr. Brenner seemed to have prepared himself in advance for her attempted escape. She wondered if he had precautions like this for every subject.

Subject.

_Seven._

Wherever he was she hoped his situation didn't look as bleak as hers.

"You've been a real disappointment to me, One." The strap running across her forehead limited her ability to see so she could only tell Dr. Brenner's location by his voice. He seemed to be pacing because his voice was coming from everywhere. "We were supposed to do great things together. We were supposed to save the world."

The hands of the guards came into view as they began to stick nodes around her face and on her arms and legs. Wires extended from them to an unknown source. A cold spot moved from her chest to her stomach as she tried to imagine where they went.

"What are those?" One's voice trembled.

"Something to help you learn discipline," Dr. Brenner answered. "This will return things to back to normal."

Dr. Brenner once again moved out of a sight and One could hear a click followed by the humming of a machine. A surge of electricity filled the room and made every hair on her body stand on end.

One of the guards wedged her mouth open and shoved a plastic mouth guard inside. Unable to move her mouth, all signs of fear now resonated in her eyes, which were opened so wide they felt like they'd burst. She had an idea of what those wires led to.

A volt of electricity ripped through her body and confirmed her fears. Her body convulsed so much that it nearly tore through the straps. A scream managed to make its way around the mouth guard and into the dense air.

There was a moment's reprieve as the electricity fulfilled its circuit. One managed to get a deep breath out before another jolt consumed her. The cycle repeated itself over and over for an indeterminate amount of time. Each time it felt like the currents were getting stronger. Dr. Brenner was probably turning up the voltage.

An anger burned in her that was almost as fierce as the electricity tearing her body apart. None of this was her fault. It was his. Dr. Brenner had abducted her, experimented on her, physically and verbally abused her, neglected her, abandoned her...This would end.

A tingling sensation of power began to fill her chest and dance along to the ends of her limbs. She tuned into it and began to imagine the brown house once more. Maybe she was strapped to a bed and that bed was attached to the walls but that wouldn't stop her. She'd take the whole damn room with her if she had to.

One's eyes were glued shut while she tried to envision every little detail about the brown house. She knew now that this must be home. It'd be up to her to determine if Dr. Brenner had been telling the truth about her family. As she was doing this the electricity in the room began to amplify, and it wasn't because Dr. Brenner was turning up the voltage.

_Brown house._

_White snow._

_Wooden fence._

_Family._

Her eyes still remained shut even when she heard cries of shock from Dr. Brenner and the two guards. She could still feel electricity rippling through her body and at first she assumed that Dr. Brenner had sent another volt through her but then she realized that this electricity felt different. It wasn't hurting her, it felt like more of a tickle. Had she become numb?

Curiosity drove One's eyes open and she repeated a similar cry of shock when she looked at her hands. There was bright blue electricity running up and down her fingers, jumping from tip to tip in an ever changing ball of energy. Was it her doing that?

She willed it to stop and it did so instantaneously. She then summoned it again and jumped back from the straps when it obeyed. _She had a new power._

In both fear and fury, Dr. Brenner sent another volt through the machine, but once again One didn't feel it. It just made the electric webs in her hands grow larger.

A crack of electricity ran from her hands up the length of the bed and cut through the straps holding her. The singed material fell away as One lifted her body off the hard plastic. She ripped the nodes off her skin and threw them aside while maintaining fierce eye contact with Dr. Brenner.

"Stay where you are, One!" Dr. Brenner ordered. A tinge of fear rippled through his voice and in that moment One knew that he had no control over her anymore.

"No," One replied, relishing in the power of the word as it echoed around the room. She had forgotten how good that word felt.

She pushed herself off the bed and took a few purposeful steps towards the door. She could sense the guards behind her but when she spun on her heel to meet them they cowered back a step. The blue light coming from her hands was the only reflection you could see in their eyes.

"Idiots!" she heard Dr. Brenner mutter as he pushed through the guards. But he, too, maintained a safe distance from her. "You have nothing out there!"

"I have nothing in here," One responded coldly. One noticed a pang of pain in Dr. Brenner's eyes. Was he actually hurt that she considered him to be nothing to her?

"What about Seven?"

One's knees froze mid-step and the electricity generating from her hands faltered for a split second. A small smile snuck into the corner of Dr. Brenner's mouth when he saw that he had found her weak spot.

"I know about the friendship you two developed," Dr. Brenner said. He became braver and took a step towards her. "How you would visit him with your portals. Is he not important to you? Is he nothing?"

"What have you done with him?" One said quietly with a strong power underlying her words. The blue light flared in her hands and sent the hairs up her arms on end.

Dr. Brenner's smile turned from triumphant to sinister. "He's not going anywhere and neither are you."

One felt the electricity ball up in her chest and flow through her veins to the ends of her limbs. Her irises returned to their original bright blue color from the gray they had dulled into. If you looked close enough, they even seemed to glow like the lights from her hands. 

" _You._ " 

Her face twisted into rage...

" _Are._ "

She lifted her left hand and pointed it at Dr. Brenner...

" _NOTHING!_ " 

The ball of energy growing in her chest shot forth from her hand and struck Dr. Brenner, sending him to the ground in a fit of convulsions. The two guards were caught by stray bolts that jumped off Dr. Brenner. They too, fell. 

One headed for the door, for her freedom, but before she left she glanced back at Dr. Brenner one last time. She no longer looked up to him, or felt the need to chase after his admiration. She felt nothing but pity for the man that she had once considered to be her Papa. 

She sprinted out the door and down the hallways of the Lab calling for Seven. She knew that at any minute the rest of the Lab personnel would be hunting her down. She didn't have time to look behind each and every door. 

"SEVEN!" One cried desperately after reaching the last hallway. "Seven, please." 

When she still didn't hear a response she collapsed at the last door at the end of the hallway. She was physically exhausted from summoning her new power and mentally exhausted from all the new information she had learned. She just wanted familiarity and comfort. She just wanted her friend.

A knock rung by One's ear from the other side of the door and sent her skidding across to the opposite side of the hallway in surprise. One's knees shook as she slowly lifted herself to her feet. She stopped just before her eyes were even with the window and took a deep breath before peering in. 

A pair of dark brown eyes met her on the other side. She would have screamed in shock but she recognized those eyes. She knew those eyes. It was Seven!

"Seven!" One shouted and slammed her hands against the door as if to break through the wood and reach his. Tears of relief flooded her cheeks and dripped past her smile. 

"Who are you?" he asked curiously, sending One's sobs to a sudden halt. _The syringe. They had done it. They had wiped his memories, including all the ones of her._ Just like his family, she was gone.

"Seven, it's me! One!" Her eyes begged him to recognize her but his eyes only replied with confusion. 

A shout came from down the hallway and One could hear the clap of shoes following after. It wouldn't be long before the hallway would be flooded with everyone who worked in the Lab. One opened a portal through the door and quickly jumped inside, her foot disappearing just before a group of guards rounded the corner. 

"Do I know you?" Seven acted a little shocked when he watched her teleport from outside his door to right behind him, but One didn't have time to explain. She knew what she had to do. 

"We need to go," One said determinedly. "Now."

"Go where?"

"Anywhere but here."

"But Papa..." Seven began before One cut him short with a cold glare. 

"We don't have a Papa anymore." The severity of One's tone told Seven not to press the matter any further. 

One tried to concentrate on opening a portal out of there. She pictured her brown house once more but her focus was thrown off by Seven's following remark, "I'm not going anywhere."

"She's gotta be down here!" a shout came from the hallway. They would find her any minute. 

"You have to, Seven," One pleaded. "You're my friend!"

"I don't know you!" Seven shouted. Goosebumps filled One's arms and legs at the volume of his voice. She tried to shush him but he only got louder as she got closer to him. "Get away from me!"

"Down there, in that room!" the voices from the hallway yelled. 

"I'm trying to save you!" One begged him to believe her but he kept backing away. 

"I don't need saving!" Seven shouted angrily.

One's peripherals caught a man's face in the window. "There she is!" 

_She would not lose everything. Not again._

In exactly thirty heartbeats the following occurred: 

1\. One focused everything she had on a way out, on the brown house. 

2\. She grabbed Seven's wrist with a strength she didn't recognize but didn't question. He was coming with whether he liked it or not.

3\. The door to the room broke off its hinges as a crowd of men and women with assorted weaponry pushed their way through.

4\. A portal finally opened behind One and Seven. She did not have time to look at what was in it before she pushed them through it.

5\. They fell.

6\. Darkness. Ash. Monsters.


	20. Dungeons & Dragons & Death

**JANUARY 15, 1977**

A hard thud from their five foot drop out of the portal brought One and Seven a harsh welcome to their new surroundings. The excitement One had felt about escaping and rescuing Seven was quickly replaced with something new as she began to look around. 

Her beloved brown house sat before her, but it was different than she remembered. It looked near ruin, with stripped paint, loose siding, and cracked windows. Despite the fact that it was winter, the yard was overgrown with weeds and the long grass rippled every so often from the movement of some unknown creature. 

But it wasn't just the house that was changed, it was the whole atmosphere as well. The sky was a permanent gray, as if covered by one continuous and never-ending cloud. Ash slowly drifted around them, settling on their lab gowns and into their hair. A sense of fear also settled upon them as foreign and uninviting noises echoed from the distance.

One unknowingly spun in a series of circles as she tried to figure out what happened to the place she knew to be her childhood home. Had she managed to time travel again? Was this the end of the world? Her head spun from conflicting feelings; the elation of escape mixed with the dread of a dead end. 

"Where are we?" Seven asked, spooking One. In the unceasing and unnatural quiet of the strange world, she had almost forgotten that he was there. 

"I don't know..." One replied.

"Can you get us out of here?" Seven asked. One turned to face him with a motherly look of concern when she sensed the underlying fear in his voice. She wanted to protect him.

With a simple nod and a smile, One turned to find something to fixate on. She racked her mind for a new place to bring them to, but she could only think of the Lab and the brown house. Maybe if she tried the brown house again, it'd send them to the one she had visited before. 

One concentrated on a dead tree in the distance but a portal never appeared before her. _Of all the times for her ability to act up..._ She tried several times but the most she could get was sparks. _Maybe she was out of juice?_

"What's wrong?" Seven asked as he watched from behind her. 

"I think I just need some rest." One tried to answer with a level tone but her confidence wavered beneath. Something deep down told her that rest wasn't the issue. "We should check out the house and see if there's anywhere to sleep or anything to eat."

"Okay..." Seven reluctantly agreed, following a few feet behind One as she led the way. He picked up the pace when one of the eerie screeches ricocheted through the dead air. 

Once they reached the house something large and shadowy stepped out from a thicket of trees one hundred yards away. They didn't know it, but they weren't alone.

~~~

**JANUARY 15, 1985**

A week of relative peace had passed since the incident with the time-travelling portal. One spent most of her time at the Byers' house, but would venture over to Mike's when school let out to hang out with the party. 

The bulk of the party's discussions had initially been geared towards the revelation that Dr. Brenner was coming back and what they could do to stop him, but after nothing further happened the topic started to become taken over by more mundane matters such as school, annoying siblings, and D&D. 

On this particular day, they had decided to reignite their old campaign that they had started with Eleven and Max and add One. One had a hard time grasping the concept of the game, or the point of even playing, but played along to appease her friends. Her mind had been flooded with anxiety lately and this was a good distraction.

"What's your move, One?" Mike asked, acting as the Dungeon Master. Their characters were in the middle of dark maze of trees and just crossed the path of a goblin who required a riddle to pass by. 

"Oh, um..." One responded, having been caught up in a daydream and not paying attention. Her cheeks blushed when she realized that Steve had been a central component of the daydream. "I answer the riddle?"

"The more you take, the more you leave behind," Mike said in the raspy voice of the goblin. "What am I?" 

One thought for a long moment before giving up. "Nevermind, I'm just going to kill it." Before her party could object she threw the twenty-sided die. It skidded across the board and landed with 18 face up. Mike repeated the action for the goblin and the party watched with bated breaths as he rolled a 6. 

"You've successfully killed the goblin," Mike said before dramatically pausing. "But wait, a rumbling begins to shake the ground. A 15-foot tall stone wall emerges from below, permanently sealing off the path! The keeper of the maze is angered by your attempt to cheat."

Lucas, Will, and Dustin all erupted into a fit of groans and profanity at their misfortune. "It was footsteps, the answer was footsteps!" Dustin exclaimed angrily. One offered a sheepish glance in apology, and while they continued to grumble they eventually dropped it. 

After literally coming to a fork in the road, the party decided to pause the campaign to restrategize at a later date. They instead turned their attention to the future; particularly One's future.

"Are you going to stay in Hawkins?" Max asked curiously. "You know, after the whole Dr. Evil thing boils over?"

"I don't know where else to go," One replied, leaving her answer at that. 

"Don't you want to try to find your family?" Mike asked. One took a while to answer.

"Even if I could remember them, I'm not sure that they'd want me back," One answered sullenly. Her eyes stuck to the ground in an attempt to hide the tears that were starting to form. 

"Why do you say that?" 

"Papa told me that they gave me up to the Lab when they discovered I had powers," One said. "That they didn't want a freak for a daughter."

"Papa was a liar!" Eleven burst out unexpectedly. 

"Maybe, maybe not," One said. "Either way, I'm too scared to find out." 

"Well, we’re your family and we like you," Will offered, giving One a slight smile that she couldn't help but return. That was one thing she couldn't deny; she had found a family in Hawkins. Not only in her Lab sister, Eleven, or the Byers' who housed and fed her, but in everyone sitting before her as well.

Eleven came over to sit by One, putting an arm around her and resting her chin on her shoulder. One leaned her head to rest against Eleven's, shutting her eyes and taking in the moment. The fourteen years of trauma, abuse, and running seemed to melt away whenever Eleven was near. She had only felt that way around one other person...

Seven. 

She was still unsure of whether he actually had been the one to force Will to choke her. The symptoms made it seem like him, but why would Seven want to kill her? And how would he be able to control Will from a moving car? Part of her had wanted to go looking for him but another part was scared of what she'd find. 

After all, he was supposed to be dead.


	21. House of the Rising Sun

**JANUARY 15, 1977**

The rotted wooden door gave out a deafening creak as it swung open on its rusty hinges. One and Seven stood in the doorway, staring in at the unknown. After taking a deep breath, One was the first to enter.

A small hope had been boiling in her soul that she would walk in to find her long-lost family. Perhaps she'd find her father standing at the stove cooking a nice meal while her mother and siblings sat patiently around the dinner table. Maybe they'd all be huddled up on the couch in the living room watching their favorite show. Or perhaps they'd be on the other side of the next door she opened, standing with warm smiles and wide-open arms, waiting for her after all this time.

Instead, what she found was more darkness and decay. One found herself stuck in the doorway, her feet glued to her spot in disappointment. Seven pushed past her to get inside, having heard another strange sound. 

Before them was a kitchen, with broken appliances and dusty counters. The black and white checkered floor was severely cracked to the point where plants had begun to grow through any open spaces. There was a table with three legs and two chairs, one of which was disassembled in pieces across the floor. But even in its terrible glory, it still felt strangely familiar to One.

"Are you going to help?" Seven asked before he began to throw open cupboard after cupboard in an attempt to find food. His stomach growled so loudly that One could hear it from the doorway. 

"Yeah, sorry," One responded quickly, shaking herself out of her stupor. She joined Seven over by the pantry and together they began to salvage anything they could. 

After the rummaging was complete, they found only a handful of items that still looked somewhat edible: two cans of tomato soup, a can of black olives, and a bag of popcorn. They washed the black grime off the cans and began to search for any utensils to open them. Seven yelled in triumph when he pulled open a drawer to find a knife and a box of matches. 

One pounded the knife into the top of each can and slowly cut them open. Seven waited impatiently at her side, his hand ready to snatch a can the second it was fully open. The two greedily slurped down a can of soup each and shared the can of olives. After they had gotten out every last drop, including the juice from the olives, they decided to explore the rest of the house for a place to sleep. 

The sound of Seven's feet clomping up the stairs to the second level rung around the house as One meandered into what looked like the living room; complete with a faded couch, moldy shag carpeting, and a shattered TV. She quickly lost focus as she was once more overwhelmed with the feeling of familiarity. In particular, she felt drawn to a framed photograph sitting on the coffee table.

The whole room seemed to spin and her breathing became heavier with each step that she took towards the picture frame. Would it show her the family she had been both dreaming and dreading? The glass was covered in the thick grime that had covered the cans, and One slowly began to wipe it away. Her heart nearly beat out of her chest as shreds of the old photo underneath began to show.

Despite the surroundings in which the picture frame found itself, the people within all wore bright smiles. However, in an instant One knew this was not her family. A handsome family containing an Asian man, an Asian women, and their two Asian children looked back at her through the cracked glass. 

"Find anything?" Seven asked from the stairs. 

One quickly set the picture frame back down. "Nothing." 

"There's three bedrooms upstairs," Seven said as he joined One in the living room. "Two of them have beds that look decent to sleep in."

"Good," One sniffled, wiping away a tear in the corner of her eye before Seven could see. She had been so close.

Seven wound past her and began to play around with the TV. When the buttons didn't work, he slapped the side of the box several times until a loud static ripped through the room. The two threw their hands over their ears until Seven could find a way to turn the volume down. 

"Anything good on?" Seven asked sarcastically. The screen flickered beneath the web of cracks. 

One moved over to stand by him, opening the cabinet that the TV was sitting upon. A stack of plastic rectangles with colorful cardboard covers sat inside. 

"What are those?" Seven asked, grabbing the one that One was examining from her hands. 

"V-H-S," One spelled out, flipping another plastic rectangle over in her hands. She was startled when she turned it over to the front and was greeted with a set of familiar numbers. "Hey, look."

Seven crinkled his nose as he took the VHS from One to see for himself. "Roger Moore as James Bond in Ian Fleming's 'Live and Let Die'"was written across the cover. Two of the O's were replaced with red zeroes and a red seven sat underneath. _007_. Seven held his wrist up next to the cover to compare.

"Maybe you're James Bond," One joked. 

"How do you work this thing?" Seven asked, ignoring One's joke as he began to investigate the TV once more. He found the rectangle slot towards the bottom of the TV and tried pushing the VHS in. To his surprise, it worked. The black static on the screen changed to a title sequence that matched the VHS cover. Seven turned the volume back up as the movie began. 

Curiosity shrouded the fear of the dark and unfamiliar world they had found themselves in as the two settled in on the couch and became absorbed in the film. It was hard to see much through the millions of cracks, but the two were determined nonetheless. One struck a match and held it under the bag of popcorn until it started to pop. 

_A movie and popcorn._ This was something they never got back at the Lab.

One began to laugh once the titular character, James Bond, began to speak in the same foreign accent that Seven had. "He sounds like you. You really are James Bond."

"James," Seven pondered, feeling the name out on his tongue. "Better than Seven."

"James it is," One agreed. 

The two once more got lost in the mystery and intrigue of the international spy movie, letting the fictional world encompass them and block out the nightmarish one they currently occupied. They got so wrapped up in the moving pictures and sounds that they didn't hear the back door creak open, or the low growls of a monster sniffing its way inside.

~~~

**JANUARY 15, 1985**

"You know, if you're planning on sticking around Hawkins I heard that Scoops Ahoy is hiring..." Dustin casually addressed. His words were accompanied by a wiggle of his eyebrows that One didn't quite understand.

"Isn't that where Steve works?" Lucas asked, also not quite picking up on Dustin's underlying insinuation.

"Nice try, Dustin, but One doesn't want to scoop ice cream for a living," Max piped up, rolling her eyes. Unlike Lucas, she had picked up on what Dustin was implying but she wasn't as much of a fan of Steve x One as Dustin was.

"Oh, and you know what she wants to do for a living," Dustin snapped, rolling his eyes.

"What do you want to do?" Eleven asked One while Max and Dustin continued to bicker.

"I've never really thought about it..." One began. From the Lab to the Upside Down, she had never thought she'd get to a point in her life where she would have the opportunity to work a normal job. She still might not. "I guess police work kind of sounds interesting."

"Hopper could probably get you a job at the police station!" Mike exclaimed.

"But I don't have any experience," One countered.

"Who needs experience?" Mike brushed her worry aside. "Nothing ever happens in Hawkins. Well, nothing ever did...But that's all supernatural shit. That's not part of normal police duties."

"I guess I could look into it..." One mused.

"I bet Hopper would even let you start now," Mike responded. "I mean, we're just sitting around waiting for things to happen anyway."

"Yeah, okay." One couldn't help but smile at the thought of her in a police uniform cruising around Hawkins in a cop car. _Officer...One..._ She'd need to come up with a last name. And probably a first one. She'd also need to learn how to drive...

"I'll talk to Hopper," Eleven smiled encouragingly.

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

"So you want to become a police officer, huh?" Hopper asked One, who sat across from him at his desk in his office. Hopper had initially been hesitant when Eleven asked him to help One with becoming a police officer. He still wasn't sure whether he could trust her, but he couldn't say no to Eleven's puppy dog eyes. "Well, there's a few steps you'll need to complete prior...Like schooling, and written tests, and obtaining a drivers license..."

One anxiously sat on the edge of her seat as Hopper went over the requirements. Her face began to fall when she realized that she didn't have any of those things and that it would take a long time to get them.

"But for now I can take you on a ride-along, give you a sense of how it all works," Hopper offered in an attempt to lift her spirits. "Would you like that?"

One nodded her head eagerly as a large smile spread across her face. "Yes, I would really like that."

"Alright, I just need you to fill out this waiver for insurance reasons." Hopper grabbed a sheet of paper from his top drawer and slipped it across the desk to One. One's cheeks flushed when her eyes met the first two words: "birth date".

"What if I don't know my birth date?" One asked nervously.

"Oh, um..." Hopper felt his own cheeks flushing. He hadn't thought of that. "Do you have an approximation?"

"I think...I think it's October 17th, 1963," One replied somewhat confidently. That was the birthday she had celebrated in her mind over the years. She didn't know why she chose that date specifically, the numbers had just felt right to her.

Hopper's ears perked up at the date. "Huh, that's my daughter's birthday."

"Eleven's?" One asked in confusion.

"No, um, I had a daughter before her. Her name was Sarah. She passed away when she was young," Hopper answered. 

"I'm sorry," One sympathized. Albeit she couldn't remember, she too had dealt with the loss of family. She couldn't imagine what it was like to realize exactly what you lost.

Hopper nodded in response but he hadn't really been paying attention to her condolences. His mind was wrapped up in new thoughts. First the hair tie, then the same 'alleged' birth date, and now he was caught up studying her eyes... _They were such a familiar shade of blue._

No, it couldn't be. He had watched his daughter die with his own eyes. Heard the beeps that signified the end of her life. It was just a coincidence.

"Ready to go?" Hopper asked after he noticed that One had finished filling out the waiver. One nodded her head eagerly and followed Hopper out of his office, through the police department, and out to his truck.

"Since we haven't gotten any calls we'll just patrol for a while. Things usually stay pretty quiet but it will give you a good sense of the town," Hopper said as he slammed his truck door shut. The two sat in silence for a while as they pulled out of the station and began to wind around the silent residential streets. Neither was quite sure what to say to the other. "How's Hawkins treating you? How's everything at the Byers'?"

"Good," One answered sincerely. "Joyce, Will, and Jonathan are really nice. And I like hanging out with Eleven, Mike, and them."

They once more returned to an awkward silence. Hopper tried to fill it by turning on the radio and _House of the Rising Sun_ began to blast through the cab. Hopper began to unconsciously sing the lyrics and One nodded her head along as she watched the friendly Hawkins scenery pass by out the window. 

" _There is a house in New Orleans they call the Rising Sun, and it's been the ruin of many a poor boy, and God I know I'm one,_ " Hopper's deep voice sang. 

" _My mother was a tailor, she sewed my new blue jeans. My father was a gamblin' man, down in New Orleans._ " To the astonishment of Hopper and One herself, One's voice joined in. 

"You like The Animals?" Hopper asked in surprise.

"I guess so," One answered, just as surprised. The song had sounded so familiar and the lyrics had just come to her like they were always there. _Like her birth date..._

"I used to sing that song with my daughter..." Hopper began to trail off as his mind began to make comparisons again. _No, just another coincidence..._

"Chief," a staticky voice interrupted his thoughts. "Chief, are you there?"

"I'm here, Flo," Hopper picked up and said into the radio. 

"Mr. Donegall keeps calling," Flo's voice weaved in and out between the crackles of the old radio. "Something has been terrorizing his cows. Three are dead."

"Copy that, on our way," Hopper responded. He looked over to One and raised his eyebrows. "Ready for the fun part?" 

One didn't have time to respond before Hopper flipped on the lights and blared the siren. She couldn't help but smile and laugh as Hopper ripped down the gravel roads, kicking up dust along the sides of the truck. 

Something unknown awaited them ahead.


	22. Not From Indiana

**JANUARY 15, 1977**

_"What shall we drink to, Mr. Bond?"_

The creature staggered into the kitchen, it's talons scratching the checkered tile with each step. It grabbed one of the empty metal cans off the table and began to sniff inside. A low roar gurgled in its throat when it found the can empty of its contents. 

_"Well, how about an earthquake?"_

It's attention turned to something else; the trail of light spilling onto the kitchen floor. Sounds emanated from the source of the light and the creature decided to follow. It came to the living room and found two sleeping masses huddled against each other on the couch. 

One's foot stirred in her sleep as she was engrossed in a dream. In her dream, she was eating dinner with her family. Cans of olives and soup were displayed elegantly on the table, and there was popcorn popping over the stove. Everyone was laughing and smiling, even though they had no faces. Instead, their heads were just smooth canvases of skin. 

Noises came from her mother's mouthless face, but they sounded strange. More like grunting and sniffing than words...A warmth followed by a rancid smell overtook One's senses and brought her out of her slumber. 

One lifted her head and was surprised to find that it had been resting on James's shoulder. Her cheeks shined red even in the dark. It didn't last long, however, when she shifted her eyes before her and found an uninvited guest illuminated by the soft glow of the television.

It's silhouette looked almost like a man, but it had gaunt skin stretched tight around its bony body and large claws hanging on either side. Her eyes worked their way up to its head where she found, like her family in her dream, that it had no face. 

One let out a piercing scream that awoke James and angered the monster. The first thing James saw when he opened his eyes was the monster opening its head to reveal infinite rows of jagged teeth. It roared and emitted a smell so retched that it almost put James back to sleep. 

The creature was about to lunge at James when One threw her hands out and struck it with volts of electricity. Its screams of pain were so powerful that they tore through the house and echoed outside. _Or were those echoes?_

The sound and smell of singing flesh also encapsulated the room as the monster writhed in blue agony. She hit it with as much power as she could before the electricity slowly sizzled to a stop. One and James held their breath, awaiting the monster's next move after it was released from its electric prison. 

The creature turned its head towards them and stood still for a moment before it whimpered and scampered off back through the kitchen door. The two released their breaths in unison, followed by a chorus of nervous laughs. _They had survived...for now._

"What the fuck was that thing?" James turned to ask One. 

"I don't know," One replied. Her eyes were still glued to the kitchen door and the dark realm that loomed beyond it. "But I don't think that's the last time we're going to see it."

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

"Mr. Donegall, how's it going?" Hopper asked as he slammed his truck door closed. A secondary slam informed him that One had also exited the vehicle.

"Not so great, Chief," Mr. Donegall answered from the gravel driveway that Hopper's truck was parked on. "I lost three of my good heifers. Two of them were pregnant."

"Sorry to hear that." Hopper took his hat off and held it at his side. "Do you know what did it?" 

"Nothing like I've ever seen," Mr. Donegall sighed and wiped his brow. "It's a pretty nasty sight."

"Why don't you show us?" Hopper asked, looking over to One who was now standing at his side. One gave him a small nod and followed after as Mr. Donegall led them around the back of his barn to the pasture and out to the field. 

They trekked through the snow-covered crops, the sound of dead hay breaking beneath their feet. Mr. Donegall led them to the edge of the field by the treeline, where three large mounds began to loom into view. A light dusting of snow covered the mounds, but the bright red underneath was still visible even from several feet away.

The smell arising from the bloody mounds was so pungent that the three had to cover their noses and mouths with their hands. Hopper took a deep breath before kneeling down to investigate closer. 

The aforementioned cows laid before them, but they were barely recognizable. Their throats were torn apart and a glossy look of fear was immortalized in their cold, dead eyes. Long, bloody scratches decorated what was left of their bodies. Their entrails were everywhere but where they were supposed to be, and Hopper had to hold back vomit as he realized that he had kneeled on an intestine. 

"Told you it was bad," Mr. Donegall said. 

"Yeah, no kidding," Hopper mumbled.

"What can you make of those bite marks?" Mr. Donegall asked. Hopper brushed aside the snow to get a closer look and was surprised to find a confusing array of teeth marks. Scattered groupings of punctures adorned the carcasses. "They can't be from any animal that lives in Indiana."

Something within One's chest tightened as she leaned beside Hopper to see for herself. She hesitantly reached out to trace the bite marks, igniting a series of flashbacks from the Upside Down. 

_The human-like silhouette._

_The gaunt skin stretched tight around its bony body._

_The wicked claws hanging limply at its sides._

_The faceless head that opened up to reveal infinite rows of jagged teeth._

Hopper had to pull One back from the corpse when she began gasping for breath, her eyes looking every which way as she tried to discern what was real and what was in her head. Her frantic eyes met his and instantly he knew exactly what had killed the cows.

"You're right, Mr. Donegall," Hopper answered as he slowly rose to his feet, guiding One along the way. "Whatever killed those cows isn't from Indiana."

~~~

After inspecting Mr. Donegall's farm for any other supernatural signs, Hopper decided that it was best to cut the ride-along short and take One back to the Byers'. Knowing that there was a Demogorgon, or demodogs, or demo-whatever running around also made him anxious to check on Eleven. She was always a magnet for those kinds of things.

"I promise I'll take you back out after we get this whole mess sorted," Hopper turned to say to One as he put the truck in park and turned off the engine. "But for now I think it's safer if you stay inside."

One looked like she wanted to say something but ultimately decided not to. She glanced up at Hopper briefly before giving him a small nod and hopping out of the truck. 

"Take care of yourself and the Byers'! I'll be back soon!" Hopper rolled down his window and called after One as she jogged up to the front door where Joyce was waiting. One turned and gave a two-finger salute in recognition before disappearing inside. After waving to Joyce, Hopper was on his way home.

Once his log cabin was in sight a sense of warmth spread through his body. But there was also another sense that he could't identify. Something felt off...strange...

After parking his truck and crunching through the snow to the door of the cabin, he was stopped before entering by a contrasting shape sitting in the white snow. A rectangular package wrapped in brown wrapping paper sat at his feet. Sketched in black marker was a date: 

_06-05-1970_

He recognized it immediately. 

It was the day Sarah died.


	23. Son of a Bitch

**JANUARY 16, 1977**

After the events with the monster, James and One decided it was best to seek out new shelter. They thought it unlikely that the monster would be returning that night so they tried to get some more sleep by taking shifts, but neither really slept. Morning, or what they perceived to be morning since it was always dark, came too slowly.

They did one last check of the house for any food or supplies they could use but came up empty-handed. As they were leaving One couldn't help but look back at her childhood home. She knew it wasn't actually her childhood home, rather some creepy, demonic version of it, but she still felt a pain in the pit of her stomach as they left. 

They followed the roads that wound around the deserted neighborhood. Both were on the constant lookout for more monsters and shuddered every time they heard a distant howl. Aside from shelter, their immediate goal was to find food, water, and possibly new clothes. The few clothes in the house had been more tattered than the gowns they were in. 

"Are you starting to remember anything?" One asked in an attempt to pass the time.

James thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I still don't remember you. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," One said sullenly. She missed her friend. Even though he was still with her, it wasn't the same.

"I wish I did though," James added with a small smile. "You seem pretty cool."

One tried to hide the smile that grew on her lips. Maybe they could get back to the friendship they had had. One day. 

"Look over there!" James pointed out, drawing One's attention away from her hopeful thoughts. She followed his finger to a lonely supermarket sitting on the corner. One and James both looked at each other as the same thought crossed their minds: _food._

The two ran for the front door eagerly, pushing their way inside to a haven unlike anything they could remember seeing before. Without saying a word, they both ran in separate directions in their own search for something to quell their angry stomachs. 

One found her way into the candy aisle and began perusing the few bags that weren't open or covered in greasy slime. She found a bag of pop rocks and ripped it open, cautiously dumping a few sugar shards into her hand. She stuck her tongue into the pile of colored sugar and jumped back when the few that stuck began fizzling in her mouth. 

She grabbed a few more promising bags of candy and continued on her journey through the supermarket. Eventually she came to the clothing section and decided to take a look around. Most of the clothing was about as holey and grimy as the clothing they had found at the house, but there were a few items that were doable. 

She found a t-shirt at the bottom of a pile that only had two holes in it and said "The Rolling Stones" across the front. For some reason the name stood out to her, and she decided to hold onto it as she looked for a pair of pants. After fifteen more minutes of searching she had a full outfit and was ready to change. 

She made her way into the crusty changing room and took the only stall that didn't have strange noises coming from inside. The door only shut part way but it was good enough. After she changed she stepped out to find a mirror and ran into James, who had come out of the other changing room. 

"Nice outfit," One smiled, looking James over. He was wearing a red and black flannel with khaki pants and a shiny black leather jacket. The jacket was a bit too big on him but it was One's favorite part of his outfit. 

"I like yours too," James replied. One blushed and looked down at her new apparel, which also included faded blue jeans red high-tops. Their outfits weren't in peak condition, but overall they didn't look too bad if you could manage to ignore the mysterious stains and moldy smell. 

They each grabbed a backpack and began to fill it with food, clothes, and other necessities. One found a few rusty kitchen knives and a box of matches, and James found a length of rope. They didn't know how long they'd be in the hellhole they found themselves in, but they needed to be prepared for whatever else they ran into.

And whatever would happen next.

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

"What is that?" Eleven asked as Hopper stepped inside. He was staring at the package in his hands and was still too entranced by the date to hear her question. "Hello?" Eleven asked again, waving her hand in his face. 

"Oh, um, I don't know," Hopper answered, coming out of his stupor. He ripped apart the packaging, careful to preserve the part with the date, and found a VHS. 

"What's on it?" Eleven asked, attempting to take it from his hands to see for herself. Hopper refused to release his grip until he got to the television. Eleven followed him every step of the way.

Hopper knelt down to slip the VHS into the VCR player. Static hummed as he turned on the television and flipped to the right channel. The ripples of static were instantly replaced with a black and white scene. The same date was stamped in the corner with the time: 02:37:16. Nine minutes before Sarah had been pronounced dead.

As he watched he realized that he was staring at security footage from a hospital. The camera was angled down on a crowded hallway full of doctors, nurses, patients, and visitors. It also offered a partial view into a room numbered 217. Suddenly he understood what he was looking at; footage of the hallway outside the room his daughter died in. 

He was lucky that Eleven was watching as well because he was so focused on the little activity he could garner from room 217 that he didn't pay attention to the whole picture. "Look!" Eleven shouted after about a minute in. Hopper moved his eyes to where Eleven's finger was pointing and gasped in shock. 

Standing just outside room 217 was a man in a white lab coat that appeared to be listening in on the activity within. He was younger, and his hair was a different color, but Hopper could still recognize the son of a bitch from anywhere.

"Papa," Eleven whispered. Hopper was too angered by the sight of Dr. Brenner to register that Eleven had used that accursed name again. 

What was he doing there? The hospital was in New York! Was he involved in Sarah's death? Was Sarah even really dead, or did he fake her death and collect her as one of his little "science experiments"? Did that mean...

_The blue hair tie._

_The same birthday._

_House of the Rising Sun._

"Grab your things," Hopper said curtly. "I'm taking you to the Byers'."

Eleven wanted to ask why, but after seeing the expression on his face she decided to just comply with orders. After she gathered the items she thought necessary for their trip, Hopper rushed her out the door and they were off to the Byers'.

~~~

"When you said you were going to be back soon, I didn't expect you to be back this soon," Joyce said jokingly to Hopper as he worked his way up her driveway with Eleven in tow. 

"I need Eleven to stay here with One and I need you to come with me," Hopper said as he walked past Joyce and led Eleven inside. The second he was confident that she was safe, he turned on his heel and walked back to his truck.

"What's going on, Hop?" Joyce asked as she followed after him frantically. "One said that some new monster from the Upside Down is in Hawkins."

"We've got bigger things to deal with," Hopper responded. He was still very concerned about the demo-monster but before he could make any headway on that he needed answers. 

Joyce stood frozen in the middle of the driveway, split between her home and Hopper's truck. 

"You coming, or what?" Hopper called from the driver's seat. 

Joyce looked back and forth between the two again, before biting her lip and deciding to join Hopper. 

"You've gotta tell me what's more pressing than monsters," Joyce said as she slammed the passenger door shut. Hopper waited to answer until he had ripped out of the driveway. 

"He was there, Joyce," Hopper responded at long last.

"Who was where?" Joyce asked. 

"Dr. Brenner was at the hospital the day Sarah died." It took Hopper a second to continue because a lump got stuck in his throat. "The son of a bitch was standing outside her room, waiting."

"You think he was involved?" Joyce asked after processing the information. 

"I think he was more than involved," Hopper answered. "I think Sarah is alive."

"But Hop, how?" Joyce pressed. 

Hopper waited a moment before turning to look at Joyce. "I think Sarah is One."


	24. Answers

**MAY 17, 1980**

One and James had been trekking the barren wasteland that they had accidentally been transported to for three years. They had become accustomed to how the strange world worked and knew where to go for shelter and how to avoid the monsters. They had had several more run-ins after the incident with One's childhood home, but with One's ability to use electricity and James' newfound memory of his own abilities, the monsters didn't stick around long. 

After time the drugs Dr. Brenner had injected in James began to wear off and pieces of his memory came back. He didn't remember everything and he still couldn't remember his life before the Lab, but he at least was able to remember One and the strong friendship they had. 

One had tried to summon a portal back several times during the first year but when they still weren't working she gave up. The two had basically accepted that this was going to be their life forever. At least it was slightly better than the Lab. They had their freedom. 

They slowly made their way across the country during their three years. None of the cars they found worked and neither knew how to drive anyways so they journeyed on foot. They had made it from New York down to the tip of Florida, staying in places until they were no longer safe. 

On this particular day, the two had their feet buried in the sand on a beach in a small town on the coast of Florida. The black sand stained their bare feet from all the ash that was mixed in but neither cared. The sound of the ocean waves lapping against the shore put them at ease and allowed them to imagine for a split second that they were in paradise. 

Having never seen the ocean in the world they came from, they had nothing to compare their current view to but both agreed that it was the most beautiful thing they had ever seen. Well, in James' case, the second most beautiful thing. 

James couldn't help but look over and admire One's silhouette as she stared out to sea. Her blonde hair had grown out and was blowing in the ocean breeze. Her blue eyes matched the sea spray that struck their faces. They were both about 17 now and having spent every second of the past few integral years of their growth together changed things. Changed feelings.

She was wearing a pastel pink beach dress that they had found at a surf shop up the street. She had been hesitant to grab more clothing since they wanted to pack light in case they had to move suddenly, but James had talked her into it. It was a change from the rock-and-roll t-shirts he was accustomed to seeing her in, but he liked it. And so did she.

One looked over and caught James staring at her. "What?" she laughed, unable to read the look on his face. 

"Nothing," James blushed, kicking at the sand with his feet. The second she looked away his eyes were drawn back to her.

"Caught you!" One smiled in satisfaction as she snapped her sight back to him. He had fallen right into her trap. "Now you _have_ to tell me why you keep looking at me like that." 

James took a few moments to himself trying to figure out what to say before he finally decided how to answer. He took a deep breath, puffed up his chest, and closed the gap between them. 

"What are you--" Before One could finish asking her question his lips were pressed against hers. It had startled her at first, but eventually she allowed herself to melt into him.

At the surface, she had never considered her feelings for James because she had never experienced those kind of feelings before. She was never taught love in the Lab and with all the abuse and torment Dr. Brenner had put her through she didn't think it was a feeling that she was even capable of. But standing there in such a serene place with her lips locked on James, suddenly she knew. 

She loved James.

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

"You think Sarah is _alive?_ You think she's _One?_ " Joyce asked incredulously, pushing herself to the edge of her seat and stretching the seat belt as far as it could go. 

Hopper hit a bump and she had to throw her arm out to prevent herself from hitting the dashboard. She had to brace herself again when he took a sharp turn into an unfamiliar driveway.

"Hop, where are we?" Joyce asked as she watched him jump out of the truck and march up to the house.

"This will only take a minute," Hopper called back. Joyce huffed and fell back into her seat. 

Hopper pounded on the front door and when he didn't get a fast enough response he twisted the unlocked door knob and let himself inside. 

"Jim," a surprised Dr. Owens called out from his couch where he was reading a newspaper. "To what do I owe the pleasure of you barging into my house unannounced?"

"Dr. Brenner's files," Hopper responded firmly, still standing in the open doorway. "Do you still have them?" 

"Project MKUltra?" Dr. Owens asked as he adjusted his reading glasses and set the newspaper down. Hopper's eyes darted down to see that Dr. Owens had been reading the comics.

"Yes!" Hopper shouted impatiently. "The Project MKUltra files, the files that Dr. Brenner had on his subjects. Where are they?" 

"Your little friends rushed us out of the Lab so quickly that we weren't able to grab all the files..." Dr. Owens blurted quickly. 

"So they're still at the Lab?"

"Y-yes," Dr. Owens stammered. "But Jim--" The slamming of the door cut Dr. Owens' sentence short when he realized that Hopper was gone.

"Hell-o, earth to Hopper," Joyce said as Hopper jumped back in the truck. "What's going on? Where are we going?" 

"To the Lab," Hopper answered.

~~~

Hopper toggled the light switch several times but the Lab remained dark. He grabbed his flashlight out of his holster and shined it before him. The sun was starting to go down and the Lab didn't have many windows so it was going to be a difficult feat finding the files. Joyce stuck behind Hopper as he followed the beam forward.

Hopper had a general idea of where he was going from their last few ventures but his patience to find answers was wearing thin. They couldn't find the files soon enough. 

"This way, Hop," Joyce said quietly, taking the lead. She grabbed the flashlight out of his hands and began to snake through the endless hallways. 

Even though the Lab had been cleared out, there was still an eerie feeling that resonated in the air. Screams and howls from the past echoed in Hopper's ears like ghosts. He tried to shake off the flashbacks that washed over him but he couldn't help but see monsters at every turn. 

"I think they're in here," Joyce whispered as she shined the flashlight on a metal name plate outside a door that read "Dr. Martin Brenner". She felt the need to remain quiet even though she knew the Lab was empty. Like Hopper, she too could feel the haunted atmosphere soaking into her skin. 

Hopper tried the door but it was locked. He reared his leg, ready to kick it in, when Joyce pushed him aside and did it herself. Hopper gave her a surprised look as she passed him to enter the office. "What?" Joyce asked when he wouldn't stop staring. 

"Nothing," Hopper responded, entering after her. The office was empty aside from a desk, chair, and a lot of dust. Hopper sighed in defeat and was about to give up when he heard a sound and looked up to see Joyce tampering with something. "What are you doing?"

"I think I found a secret door," Joyce answered as she investigated a lone keypad mounted on the wall. "Give my your cuff key." 

"How is the cuff key going to help?" Hopper asked as he placed his cuff key in her outstretched hand. Joyce wedged the tip of the cuff key between the wall and the keypad and jimmied it off. 

"Do you have a pocket knife or something?" Joyce asked next, turning around to face Hopper. Hopper had to cover his eyes as she accidentally flashed him in his face with the flashlight. 

Hopper traded off his pocket knife for the flashlight and held it steadily over her shoulder as she worked her magic with the wires. Within minutes, a portion of the wall creaked open and a cold draft entered the room. 

"What can't you do?" Hopper asked in surprise. Joyce just gave him a knowing smile before she pulled the panel open and slipped into the darkness.

Hopper had to take a deep breath and calm his rapid heart before following after. On the other side of the wall could be answers, and while he was desperate for them, he didn't know if he was quite ready for what he'd find.

"Hop, you coming? I need the light!" Joyce's voice called. Based on the echo of her voice, it sounded like she was in a fairly large room. When Hopper finally found the courage to go inside he found his assumption to be right. 

Through the beam of his flashlight he was met with the dull glare of metal filing cabinet after metal filing cabinet. There was an endless amount of information before him and he didn't even know where to begin. How many poor people had Dr. Brenner subjected to his evil experiments?

Joyce was already working her way through a filing cabinet, bringing the paper close to her eyes and trying to squint through the darkness at the text. Hopper joined her so that they could share the flashlight. He stood it up on one of the filing cabinets so that the beam hit the ceiling and flowed down the walls like a waterfall of light. 

"It looks like it's ordered numerically. This cabinet has information on Subject Three," Joyce informed him. As Hopper began to dig through the filing cabinet in front of him he found that she was right. His cabinet contained information on Subject Four. Hopper wound behind Joyce and moved down two cabinets from her. _This had to be the one._

Hopper's hands shook as he pulled out the top drawer and began rifling through the paperwork. He pulled out the first piece of paper that his fingers could successfully latch onto and immediately noticed the telltale number printed in the upper right corner: 001. 

Despite Joyce's protests, Hopper snatched the flashlight back and shone it on the paper in his hand. The beam wavered over the text as Hopper's eyes purged it of all information. 

_Subject: 001_

_Date of Birth: October 17, 1963_

_Eye Color: Blue_

_Hair Color: Blonde_

The next bit of information on the paper gave him pause and he found himself unable to look away from the letters. They floated in his retinas, rearranging themselves over and over but they always ended up spelling the same thing. 

"Did you find anything?" Joyce asked, rising on her tiptoes to look over his shoulder. She put a hand on his arm when she heard his breathing increase rapidly. His mouth kept moving but no sound came out. "Hop?" 

After he still didn't respond Joyce's eyes moved to the paper to see for herself. A gasp escaped her lips when she found the same piece of information that Hopper had:

_Name: Sarah Hopper_


	25. It's a Date

**JUNE 13, 1980**

"After you, madame," James bowed as he held the salon door open for One. 

"Thank you, m'lord," One curtsied and entered.

After a taking a good look at each other one day the two agreed that they needed hair cuts. James' curls hung past his eyes and One's hair continuously got caught in her backpack straps when she put it on. It was getting to be slightly dangerous when they had to deal with monsters on a semi-regular basis. 

After a thorough search of the salon, the two found one pair of scissors, a comb with half its teeth, and a container of red hair dye. 

"Bet you won't," One smiled as she eyed up the hair dye. 

"I'll do it if you do it," James shrugged with a similar smile. 

"Deal." One gave James a firm hand shake and then grabbed the scissors. 

"Whoa, I'm going first?" The gleam of the flickering lights shined off the dull metal of the scissors and gave James a startle. He subconsciously began petting his hair as One took a step closer. 

"You don't trust me?" One asked, snapping the scissors open and shut. 

"I do..."

"Good," One said and guided James into the chair. She threw a smock over his shoulders and began cutting before James could protest any further.

James watched nervously through the shrouds of mirror that weren't covered in grime but he had to admit that One was doing pretty well. He didn't know why he worried so much about how his hair looked in a post-apocalyptic world; he didn't have anyone to impress except One. And perhaps that was why.

One noticed him staring at her in the mirror and smiled. "How am I doing?" 

"If you give me a mohawk I'm going to trip you the next time a monster is chasing us," James answered. 

"I'll be safe then," One smirked. "I was going to give you an afro."

"Ha ha," James laughed sarcastically. "Are you almost done?"

"Just about, be patient," One muttered, trimming a few more curls. "And...done." 

James leaned forward so that he could see his reflection better. "Wow, it actually looks pretty good..." 

"No need to act so surprised," One retorted. "Okay, my turn."

"I...um...I..." James began to stammer as One held the scissors out to him. 

"Baby." One rolled her eyes once she realized that James was going to chicken out. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail and snipped the chunk in one fell swoop. To James' astonishment, inches of golden blonde hair fell to the floor. 

James looked up to see One leaning next to the mirror and trimming the disproportionate strands. The result was a shaggy bob that fell just below her chin and James was captivated by it. 

"What do you think?" One turned to James after she finished. 

"Beautiful," James answered in awe. He immediately blushed afterwards. 

"Thanks," One blushed in return. She skipped over and gave James a peck on his very red cheek. Much to One's surprise, he turned partway through and met her on the lips. They stood with their lips pressed to each other for what felt like eternity but was only a few seconds. 

When they pulled away they locked eyes and both nervously giggled. While their feelings for each other were very apparent, it was still an unspoken thing. And they were happy with it that way. Just the two of them against the hellish monster-infested world. 

"Alright, a deal is a deal." One wiggled her eyebrows as she lifted the container of red dye. "Who's going first?"

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

"Where do you think they're going?" Eleven asked One as they watched Hopper and Joyce speed off through the window.

"I don't know, but we need to be prepared," One responded with a straight face. Whatever Hopper and Joyce were going after could not be good and there were still demo-monsters running around. She felt a strong responsibility to keep Eleven safe. "Help me move the couch."

With Eleven's telekinetic assistance, every entrance in the Byers' home was soon barricaded. Luckily Will was spending the night at Mike's and Jonathan was going to be at work late. It helped One's anxiety knowing that they would be safe. 

Once they felt secure enough the two gave each other a nod of approval and tried to settle their thoughts. This wasn't so easy for Eleven, who resumed her spot by the window. She was concerned about Hopper. That video had really upset him. Wherever he had gone with Joyce, she felt certain that the video was related and that somehow Papa was involved. 

One plopped on the floor and tried to think of the next course of action. She didn't know what else there was to do but wait but there was some inkling in her gut that her patience would be short-lived. As if on cue, Eleven asked a question that set One's hairs on end. 

"Who is that?" Eleven asked, pressing her hand over her eyes and staring out the window. 

"What are you talking about?" One asked, pushing herself off the floor to join Eleven.

"That boy standing at the edge of the yard," Eleven answered, pointing her finger against the glass to show One. 

One also had to press her hand over her eyes to block out the glare of the lights off the window, and once she saw what Eleven was referring to a familiar tingle worked its way up her spine. Standing unnervingly still under the flickering light of the post just beyond the driveway was a guy in flannel and khakis with a slightly red tinge to his hair. _James._

"Eleven, I need you to listen to me." One turned to Eleven with a serious face. "No matter what, _do not_ follow me."

"Why? Who is he?" Eleven asked.

"I'll be back," One answered, ignoring Eleven's questions. She wasn't quite ready to tell her who he was yet. One wasn't even entirely sure that _she_ knew who he was. There was the whole issue of James possibly forcing Will to choke her and also being dead...She didn't know who she was going to find under that post.

One gave Eleven one last look before she disappeared through a portal and out into the front yard. She fixed her sight on the spot she had seen James and was perturbed when she found that he was no longer there. She swung her head around wildly in search of him but the setting sun made it too dark to see anything clearly. 

One glanced back at the window where she spotted Eleven watching her from the other side. She stood rooted to her spot, split on what she should do. She felt bad about leaving Eleven but she needed answers. She avoided looking back at Eleven as she took off towards the end of the yard. 

"James!" One shouted, desperate for a response. A feeling of deja vu sent shivers throughout her body. She was overwhelmed with memories of running down hallways at the Lab in search of Seven. "James!" she called again.

Suddenly the silhouette of a person emerged at the end of the driveway and One felt her legs stop pumping. A nervous smile inched its way across her face as she cautiously approached the person.

~~~

**10 MINUTES PRIOR**

Steve pulled over and parked his car on the side of the road just before it could come into view of the Byers' house. He looked down at the bouquet of flowers lying on his passenger seat and took a deep breath. He was going to do it. He was going to ask One out. 

"Alright, Harrington, you've got this," Steve told himself. He double checked his hair in the mirror and combed through the loose pieces with his fingers. He also bared his teeth to check for anything in them. So far, so good. 

"Easy peasy, you've asked girls out millions of times before," he continued to tell himself as he got out of his car and slammed the door. "Well, not _millions_ of times..." he corrected himself. 

Steve breathed in and out several times before he willed his legs to walk forwards. He only took a step when he caught the flowers still sitting on the passenger seat in his peripheral vision. 

"Dammit," Steve grumbled as he fumbled for his keys, which fell to the ground and slid under his car. "Dammit!" Already off to a rocky start. 

After he had re-fixed his hair from army-crawling under his car and the flowers were in his anxious death-like grip, he started walking towards the Byers'. His heart beat with every step and he felt slightly nauseous, but he pressed on nonetheless.

~~~

"James?" One asked the silhouette that was fast approaching. 

"James?" the silhouette responded as it stepped under the light. One felt a mixed sense of relief and disappointment upon seeing who it was. "No, it's Steve."

"What are you doing here?" One asked curiously. A confused look spanned her face as she looked down to see a bouquet of colorful flowers in his hand. Steve blushed and quickly hid them behind his back. 

"I...um...well..." Steve stammered, scratching the back of his neck. 

One stood staring at him, impatiently awaiting an answer. He was taking up time to look for James. Although she had an inkling that it was already too late. Steve probably scared him off. 

"I was gonna...Who's James?" Not confident enough to finish his sentence, Steve switched topics last minute.

"Nobody," One answered quickly. 

"Okay..." Steve decided not to push it further but the fact that she was out in her yard looking for another guy did make him feel a little nervous. And a little jealous. 

"I'm going to head back inside..." One said after a minute of awkward silence. She started to turn to walk back up the driveway when Steve stopped her.

"Wait!" Steve called, thrusting the flowers out from behind his back. "Sorry, this is really embarrassing. I actually parked about a block back so that I could give myself a pep talk before you saw me and evidently that didn't do me any good because I'm still a nervous wreck."

One's features softened as he tried to explain himself. "It's okay." 

Steve paused to take several deep breaths before continuing. "Look, I'm here because I wanted to ask you out...on a date."

"A date?"

"Yeah, I think you're really cool and kick-ass and cute and I was wondering if you'd want to get dinner with me tomorrow." The words spilled out of Steve's mouth in a quick jumble as he held the flowers out to One. He'd never felt so flustered around a girl before. Had he lost his game? Or was One just that special?

Even though she was cold because she had left the house without a coat, her face felt warm from the blush that invaded her cheeks. One slowly reached out and grabbed the bouquet from him, burying her face in the petals once she brought them close to her chest. Mostly to smell them, but also to hide her bright pink cheeks from Steve. 

"Here." Steve took off his coat and draped it around her shoulders once he noticed her shivering. 

"Maybe we could continue this conversation somewhere warmer?" One offered, feeling bad but grateful that Steve had given up his coat for her. 

"Sure," Steve responded. "In your house, or...?"

One looked back to the house where she could still see Eleven's figure standing in the window. She didn't really want to continue this conversation in front of Eleven. There was also the matter of the doors being barricaded..."Is there somewhere else we could go?"

"My car is parked just down the street," Steve offered and One nodded in approval. The two walked quietly towards the car, and when they arrived Steve rushed over to open her door for her. 

During the walk One couldn't help but think about James. It had been a long time, but he was the first person she had ever loved and seeing him under that lamp post jolted some old feelings...But then there was Steve. And his silky hair and his goofy smile. She didn't know how she was going to answer.

Once the two were seated comfortably inside, both began to speak at the same time. 

"If you don't want to that's totally fine," Steve blurted. 

"Yeah, tomorrow night would work," One exclaimed. The pattern of speaking simultaneously continued. 

"What?"

"What?"

"You first." 

"No, go ahead."

"I was just saying..." Steve began to repeat himself when One cut him off.

"I'd love to," One said and felt her cheeks become even warmer. If she blushed any more her face would turn into a light bulb. She was a bit surprised by her answer, but she had decided to go with her gut and her gut said Steve. 

There was this magnetic pull towards Steve that One didn't quite understand. They just felt connected in some way, kind of like she had with James. But with Steve it was more intense. Like how she had an inkling that she'd see him again soon, and the portal to the future where she saw them kissing...

"A-awesome," Steve stuttered. He found it difficult to talk when his face was being split in half by a smile. "So, um, tomorrow at seven o'clock? I'll come pick you up?"

One was about to answer when a rap on the window echoed through the car. They were no longer alone.


	26. Two Birds with One Stone

**JULY 4, 1980**

After they reached the tip of Florida, One and James had decided to follow the coast until they came across the Mississippi River. This became their map as they traversed the dead land. The two had followed the Mississippi all the way up to St. Louis, where they made a pit stop at the Gateway Arch. 

One and James were sitting on the grass looking up at the wondrous monument when loud explosions began to ricochet through the air. One's head shot up from where it had been lying on James' lap and her hands instinctively lit up bright blue. 

"What the bloody hell is that?" James shouted over the noise.

"I don't know, but it can't be good," One answered, scanning the surrounding landscape. The bangs were followed by the pained screeches and roars of nearby monsters. "They don't like it either."

"Look!" James exclaimed, pointing up at the sky. They watched a faint rocket of light shoot up into the air and explode into an array of colorful sparks. Shortly after the one went off, another followed. 

"Fireworks," One said in awe. The word just came to her, along with a memory of watching a similar spectacle from lawn chairs set up in the backyard of the brown house they had left behind ages ago. "It must be the Fourth of July." 

"What is the 'Fourth of July'?" James asked. 

"It's a holiday," One began to explain. "I don't really know what it's about but people celebrate with fireworks and barbecues and parades." 

She was surprised at how much of this was coming back to her. They had been away from Dr. Brenner and his mind-erasing drugs for so long that the long-term effects must have been wearing off. She still couldn't remember her family, however. 

"Sounds like a good time," James nodded along. They watched for a while longer, trying to ignore the continuous screeching that was coming from around them. "Do you think that means somebody else is here? Setting them off?" 

"No..." One responded slowly as she tried to contemplate their existence. "They're too faint, I think...I think they're coming from another world... _our_ world."

"Does that mean that we can get back?" James asked hopefully. 

"Maybe..." One decided to try another portal for old time's sake, but wasn't too surprised when a less impressive array of sparks appeared before her and disappeared immediately. James put a hand on One's arm to comfort her and One returned the gesture with a half smile. "I'm sorry." 

"What do you have to be sorry for?" James asked in disbelief. 

" _I'm_ the one who brought us here and now I can't even get us out," One sighed. 

" _You're_ the one who saved us," James argued. "Just think about what Dr. Brenner would have done to us if we stayed?" One gave a small nod in agreement but she still felt guilty. "This world may be a little creepy...and monster-infested...and grimy...but I don't care where I am as long as I'm with you."

One felt a few tears growing in the corners of her eyes and quickly wiped them away before James could see. She didn't know what she would do without James. He was her everything now, and if she ever lost him she would lose herself as well.

One leaned her head onto his shoulder and shut her eyes to take in the blissful moment. As was typical with her life, however, the blissful moment did not last long.

"Do you hear that?" James asked, startling One off his shoulder. "It sounds like they're getting closer..." 

A loud roar from right behind them sent the two to their feet. A trio of demogorgons stood before them, screaming in distress and clawing at the air. The fireworks were driving them crazy. 

Immediately the two got to work and began brandishing their powers. This was nothing new for them. However, it was strange to see demogorgons travelling in packs. They were usually solitary creatures...

The demogorgons continued towards them and One sent a volt of electricity their way. This temporarily set them back but they still pressed forward. One continued to hit them with everything she had but it was not very effective. Usually they ran at this point...

"James!" One called out over the boom of fireworks and the screams of the demogorgons. "Any time now!"

"I'm trying!" James called back, trying to hone into his ability. He focused on one of the demogorgons and tried to force it to turn away but the demogorgon still continued on its path. He tried again and again, still with no success. "It's not working!"

"James, we need to run!" One yelled once she realized that they were being overpowered. "Now!" 

One and James turned on their heel and were met with an unpleasant surprise: more manic demogorgons. The crazed monsters surrounded them and one thing immediately became very evident: _they were screwed._

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

_Name: Sarah Hopper_

Hopper stood silently staring in shock at the paper in his hands. A mix of emotions swept through him and he didn't know which one he felt more strongly. He felt elation that his daughter was alive, but also a deep sadness that she had been through so much shit for over a decade and he hadn't been able to be there for her.

"Oh my god, Jim," Joyce said with her hand over her mouth. "You were right, she's alive."

Hopper slowly turned towards Joyce and collapsed into her open arms. He broke down and sobbed every last tear he had onto Joyce's shoulder. He hadn't cried in so long. It felt...good.

Grief quickly turned to anger when Hopper remembered whose office they were in. "When that piece of shit gets here I'm going to make him wish he had stayed with the Demogorgon," Hopper growled and pulled away from Joyce.

"Hop," Joyce warned. Her ears perked up when she heard something rattle outside Dr. Brenner's office.

"No, I'm serious, Joyce," Hopper continued, ignoring her. "I'm going to tear that asshole limb from limb. He took my daughter--"

"HOP!" Joyce shouted, silencing Hopper immediately. "Listen!"

The two quieted their breathing so that they could hear better. After a few moments of silence, Hopper picked up what Joyce had heard. The rattling was coming from the doorknob to Dr. Brenner's office. It was accompanied by the sound of heavy breathing or sniffing...like an animal. A _big_ animal.

"Two birds with one stone," Hopper muttered as he reached for his gun. He slowly crept towards the panel. 

" _What?_ " Joyce whispered in confusion. She tried to follow after him but Hopper held out an arm to stop her. 

"I think I figured out where the demo-monster went to," Hopper answered quietly. He turned to face Joyce and put a finger to his lips before he crept further into the office. Joyce just watched him in bewilderment. _He had lost it._

When Hopper was across the threshold he quickly turned and shut the panel on Joyce. "Hop?" Joyce called through the panel. "Hop!"

She tried slamming on the panel a few times but Hopper wouldn't respond and she didn't want to alert whatever was out there to their whereabouts. "You've got to be fucking kidding me," Joyce sighed into the darkness. 

She pressed her ear against the panel and felt her heart drop to her stomach as she tried to discern what was happening on the other side. _Typical Hop. Thought he was invincible and that he had to do everything alone._

She heard the door knob twist and the door creak open...She heard Hopper's footsteps slowly enter the hallway...She heard what must have been the monster's low growl as it discovered Hopper...The scratching of claws on linoleum floor getting closer and closer...Three gunshots...And then silence.

Joyce stumbled back from the panel when she heard something moving towards it. It flew open and a bright light flashed in her eyes, temporarily blinding her. "Come on, let's move," Hopper's voice called into the secret room. 

Joyce rushed out after him, looking down at the bloody body of a demodog on the floor as she passed it. Hopper had been right again. _Two birds with one stone._ They got their answers _and_ found the monster all in one trip.

"That one is dead but there may be more," Hopper called back to her as he found his way back to the entrance of the Lab. "They usually travel in packs."

Joyce and Hopper booked it for the truck and once they had clambered in and shut their doors Hopper locked them. The two took a few deep breaths before they shared a look and burst out in joyous laughter. 

"Hop, Sarah is _alive,_ " Joyce smiled.

"I know," Hopper smiled back. "And we're going to go see her."


	27. The Reunion

**JULY 4, 1980**

The circle of demogorgons closed tighter and tighter around One and James. The circle soon became so small that One and James had to press their backs against each other. One kept hitting them with lightning but it didn't do much to ease their fears. As long as the fireworks were still driving the demogorgons crazy, their powers were useless. 

One screamed in pain as a stray claw scratched her arm and left a deep red scar. "One!" James shouted, dodging another claw to check on her. 

"I'm fine," One assured him before unleashing an explosion of blue electricity on the monsters. They took a step back, but still continued on. 

"What do we do? Nothing is working!" James shouted above the roars and the fireworks. 

"I...I don't know," One stammered between ducks and dodges. 

James threw his leg out to push away a demogorgon that was getting too close and it latched onto his ankle. He fell to the ground and flailed with his other leg until another demogorgon grabbed it. They began to drag him away from the circle.

"James!" One screamed. She blasted away a demogorgon before taking off after James and the demogorgons. She threw herself onto the ground and grabbed the collar of James' leather jacket. She pulled as hard as she could, but the strength of the two demogorgons was winning out. 

One was not about to give up so easily though. She pushed herself to her knees and continued tugging. One slowly moved to her feet and James' body rose with her. The monsters and her continued playing tug-of-war with James until One pulled too hard and she went flying backwards with James' jacket. 

One jumped to her feet and was about to run after them again when she felt a claw scrape its way down her spine. She fell face first onto the ground in agony, unable to move. Her vision was filled with the disgusting clawed feet of the demogorgons as they surrounded her once more. 

"James!" she screamed out again.

"One!" James' faint voice called back. He was getting farther away. 

In one last desperate plea, One called forth as much electricity as she could muster. A blue sphere of lightning enveloped her, shielding her from the attacks of the demogorgons. They shrieked in pain as their arms passed through the electricity, but in their madness they still continued. 

The energy it took to hold out her power began to numb the pain she felt in her back. She tried to push herself off the ground but she fell right back down. The demogorgons were still above her, trying to fight their way to her through the shield. It was looking like the end for both of them. 

But then the fireworks stopped. 

The demogorgons staggered back as they slowly regained control over their bodies. Their growls became less angry and more confused. One capitalized on their moment of bewilderment and pushed away the shield that was encapsulating her. It exploded around them, striking the demogorgons and nearly knocking them over. 

One held her breath as she waited for them to stabilize. She pressed her eyes shut and hoped with everything in her that the crazed faze the demogorgons were in was over and that her power would once more be effective. 

Still unable to move, One watched the demogorgons stumble away in the same direction that James and the other demogorgons had gone. She had done it! Her victory didn't last long, however. Silent tears began to work their way down her cheeks as she thought of James. _She was so useless. How could she let them take her best friend?_

_How could she let them take the man she loved? ___

__After several tried and failed attempts to get up, One was finally able to flop over onto her back. The gray, cloudy sky above taunted her as she faded in and out of consciousness. Her fingers found some mobility and wriggled until they felt the smooth leather of James' jacket. Five words escaped her lips before she fell into the darkness:_ _

__"I will find you, James."_ _

____

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

After a long and eager drive back to the Byers', Hopper and Joyce finally pulled into the driveway and parked. Once Hopper turned off the ignition, Joyce opened the door and was halfway out when she noticed that Hopper wasn't moving.

"Ready to go inside?" Joyce asked. Hopper's eyes were fixed out the window at nothing in particular.

"Not yet..." Hopper answered faintly.

Joyce climbed back into her seat and shut the door behind her. She turned to look at Hopper, who tried to ignore her knowing gaze. "Want to talk about it?"

"Talk about what?" Hopper scoffed, still stuck in his stupor. He paused for a few moments and looked down at his hands in his lap before speaking again. "What if she doesn't like me? What if I'm a disappointment?"

"Oh Hop," Joyce sighed with a reassuring smile. "She's going to love you."

"I'm not exactly the best dad in the world..." Hopper said. "I didn't even know my daughter was still alive."

"Oh my god, if you try to blame yourself for that I'm going to hit you," Joyce threatened and rolled her eyes. 

"I also kicked her out," Hopper reminded Joyce. "What if she can't forgive me?"

"I find that apologies usually do the trick," Joyce offered with a half-smile. Hopper tried to return it but struggled. "Look, Hop, I know you're scared. I was terrified when I found Will. I had changed as a person and I was worried that I wouldn't be the same mother he was waiting for. But we can't change what happens, we can only move forward. There's a girl in there who has gone fifteen years without a family. She's going to love whoever walks through that door because _they love her._ "

Hopper gave Joyce a nod and took a deep breath before popping open his truck door and jumping out. With each step towards the house, it felt like gravity was getting stronger. _Had walking always been this hard?_

Hopper paused with his hand on the door knob, physically unable to go any further. Joyce placed her hand on top of his and helped him to turn it. After a shared glance and another nod of reassurance, they pushed together but were surprised when the door didn't budge. 

"What the hell?" Hopper muttered. A knocking from the window caught their attention and Hopper and Joyce looked up to see Eleven standing in the window with her hand held out. After a few minutes of banging and clattering, the door swung open.

When they entered they found the furniture strewn randomly around the room. "Barricade," Eleven answered their confused looks. Joyce tried to hold back a sigh. Why was her house never the same as when she left it? 

"Where's One?" Hopper asked, quickly noticing the lack of her presence. 

"I don't know," Eleven answered. She opened her mouth to explain further but Hopper filled the silence instead.

"You _don't know?_ " Hopper exclaimed.

"Deep breaths, Hop," Joyce quietly reminded him. 

"She left, she told me to stay here," Eleven sputtered as she began to explain. "There was a boy and she went out to see him..."

"A _boy?_ " Hopper cut in, but Eleven ignored his interruption and continued talking.

"...and then he disappeared and Steve showed up..."

" _Harrington?_ " 

"...and then they both left and I haven't seen them since," Eleven finished. 

"Which way did they go?" Hopper asked, trying to remain calm despite the fact that his daughter was missing and two boys were involved. Eleven pointed out the window and Hopper quickly took off in that direction, leaving Joyce and Eleven behind. 

He didn't make it far from the driveway when he noticed a BMW parked on the side of the road. He could make out two figures sitting in the front seats. He silently cursed to himself for not noticing it when they drove in. He had been too distracted by thoughts of reuniting with Sarah. 

He jogged up alongside it and rapped on the window a few times. A startled Steve looked up and rolled down the window. Hopper leaned down to see One sitting with an equally shocked face in the passenger seat. 

"Chief, what can I do for ya?" Steve asked slowly.

"I need to talk to One," Hopper answered sternly. The dad voice was already coming out. " _Alone._ "

One and Steve exchanged a glance before One pushed open the car door and exited the vehicle. Before she shut the door, she leaned down and said, "Seven o'clock works."

Steve's big, corny smile was the last thing she saw before she left with Hopper. 

"What was that about?" Hopper asked as they began their walk back to the Byers' house. 

"Oh, um, Steve asked me on a date," One answered hesitantly. She didn't really feel comfortable talking to Hopper about it. 

"He _what--_ " Hopper had to force himself to take several deep breaths to prevent him from saying something he regretted. "Alright, adding that to the docket..."

The two remained silent until they made it back inside. "Would you mind if we had some space?" Hopper asked Eleven and Joyce. Joyce immediately nodded her head and led Eleven into the kitchen. Hopper took a seat on the couch and One hesitantly followed. 

"What did you want to talk to me about?" One asked, a slight tremble growing in her voice. The look on Hopper's face told her it was serious, and she was becoming concerned that she was in trouble. Again.

"First off," Hopper began. "I want to apologize for what you overheard me saying to El last week. I was angry and scared and I shouldn't have said those things. I know now that you would never try to hurt us and I should have protected you instead of kicking you out."

"It's okay, I forgive you," One responded, slightly surprised. She hadn't expected him to apologize. If anything she felt like she should be the one to apologize. She had almost gotten him killed, after all. "And I'm sorry for you endangering you and Eleven."

"You don't need to apologize, it was an accident," said Hopper immediately. 

Now that he had marked off the first discussion point, it was time to brave himself for the second and most important. He took a few moments to collect himself and think about exactly what he was going to say. He had worked on a script during the car ride and now he had completely forgotten it. 

He couldn't believe he hadn't recognized her before now. Granted, she was much older than the last time he had seen her and he had known her to be dead, but how could a father not recognize his own daughter? While he was trying to figure out the right words, he got caught up in her blue eyes, and something came to mind. 

"Was there something else you wanted to talk about?" One asked after the silence continued. 

"Do you...do you recognize this?" Hopper asked at last, pulling back his sleeve to reveal the blue hair tie around his wrist. One shook her head no. "You used to wear it, before the chemotherapy took all your hair. You'd run around with those little pigtails on top of your head as I'd chase you around the park." 

One could feel her heart beating rapidly in her chest. A layer of sweat covered her body and the room suddenly felt much colder. What was he trying to say? 

"We'd sing along to classic rock as I drove you to treatment and I read you Anne of Green Gables while you were in the hospital," Hopper continued. He couldn't help but smile at the memories and he felt a small tear building up in the corner of his eye. "I thought you had died. They told us your cancer was untreatable but now it's pretty obvious that that was all bullshit." 

"I don't understand," One whispered. 

"I know you don't remember any of this, but your name is Sarah Hopper," Hopper said as the tear finally escaped and made its way down his cheek. "I'm your father."

"Father?" As One said the word, it echoed in her ears. _Father, FATHER, fa-ther..._

The room began to spin around One as everything in her mind became a blur. Her heart was practically exploding out of her chest at this point.

"Whoa, whoa, are you okay?" Hopper asked when he noticed her eyes becoming distant. 

One became overwhelmed with old memories that were resurfacing simultaneously. _School, birthdays, vacations, Christmas..._ Memories she didn't recognize, but knew deep down, belonged to her. And at the center of every memory were those two people she had strove for so long to remember. The two were always faceless, but this time...

One looked up at Hopper's face through tear-stained eyes. "Dad," she whispered.


	28. Blue Hair Tie

**AUGUST 30, 1982**

One had immediately began tracking James and the demogorgons from the moment she could stand. She followed the trail for as long as she could detect it and then still continued after it faded away. 

She was intent on following through with her promise, but each time she felt the trail getting warmer she became more and more concerned about what she would find at the end of it. This lasted for a year. 

The day she gave up was the day she broke completely. Not even Dr. Brenner or the Upside Down had destroyed her spirit this badly. She had convinced herself that she could feel James' life force and this is what had kept her going for so long. But when she let reality, not hope, guide her thoughts, the truth became more apparent.

James was dead. 

There was no way that James could have survived a pack of demogorgons, even if his mind-controlling abilities had kicked back in. He could only focus on one being at a time and there had been seven that had dragged him off. It was useless to continue to hope for something that was so impossible and this killed her. 

One honored James by wearing the leather jacket she had ripped off of him in the fight. She refused to ever take it off. It was the last thing she had to remember him by. She also continued to dye the tips of her hair red whenever she cut her hair. 

The demogorgons must have had the same idea that James and One had because they continued to follow the Mississippi north. Even after the trail went completely cold, One still followed the river all the way to where it ended in Minnesota. 

She found an abandoned cabin in Itasca State Park and decided to take refuge there until something found and killed her. She didn't really care if she survived or not anymore. What was the point? She didn't have James. 

She didn't have anyone.

~~~

**JANUARY 16, 1985**

One and Hopper collapsed into each other in a long lost hug. They relished in the feeling of warmth and family that the hug evoked. Both had been alone for so long that they had forgotten what it felt like to have family. 

"I want you to have this," Hopper said as they pulled away. He took the blue hair tie off his wrist and held it out for One. 

One held up her wrist and allowed him to slip it on. Her hair was a little too short to put up in a ponytail but she appreciated the sentiment. She admired the hair tie until another thought popped into her mind. "Mom?"

Hopper hesitated before speaking. A selfish urge within him told him not to answer but he pushed past it. She deserved the truth. "Her name is Diane. We divorced shortly after you died--shortly after we thought you died." Hopper corrected himself. "She moved back to New York and married a guy named Bill. They have a kid of their own." 

One gave a solemn nod. She wished she could have a reunion with her mother as well but she was glad to have even one parent. 

"So what is this about you having a date with Harrington?" Hopper asked after he felt confident that the topic of One's mother was over. 

One couldn't help but roll her eyes. They had been reunited for all of two minutes and he was already stepping into the overprotective dad shoes. "You know I'm like twenty-one, right?" 

"Yeah, but you were seven when I last saw you," Hopper argued with a smile. The smile quickly faltered when he remembered that he had missed out on so many key milestones in her life. He didn't get to cheer her on at high school sporting events or teach her how to drive...He didn't get to vet her prom date or drop her off at college... _But then again, she didn't get to do any of those things either..._

"We're...getting dinner," One answered slowly. She had thought it felt awkward telling Hopper about it before, now it was even stranger talking about it with her _dad._ "Tomorrow night...at seven."

"Goody, I'll put it on my calendar," Hopper said. One couldn't tell if he was being serious or sarcastic. She didn't get a chance to clarify because just then Eleven came bursting into the living room. 

"What are you guys talking about?" Eleven demanded. She had been trying to eavesdrop from the kitchen and while she couldn't hear much, she had picked up a few key words that evoked her curiosity. 

"Well, One is moving back in with us," Hopper answered. 

"Really?" Eleven asked, her face lighting up in a huge smile. She looked to One, who couldn't help but match the smile. Eleven's smiles really were infectious. 

Eleven's eyes glanced down and caught sight of the blue hair tie around One's wrist. "Sarah?" Eleven gasped and looked to Hopper for confirmation. Hopper gave her a small nod and a smile that sent Eleven careening into the two of them on the couch. 

Joyce watched the big family bear hug from the doorway with a warm smile and a hand over her heart. She was so elated for her friend. Just a few years ago Hopper had been all alone, finding company in bottles of pills and booze. Now he had two daughters and she had never seen him so happy. 

Once One and Hopper had managed to redistribute Eleven's weight enough so they could breathe, a serious look overcame One's face. 

"What's wrong, honey?" Joyce asked, picking up on the sudden change in her demeanor. 

"There's something I need to tell you guys," One said solemnly. She felt as though she couldn't keep the secret about James from them any longer. Eleven had literally _seen_ him out in the yard. What would she do if he returned?

"What is it?" Hopper asked, a note of concern leaking into his voice.

One took a deep breath and looked each of them in the eyes before explaining. "I wasn't alone when I escaped the Lab."


	29. Polka Dot Dress

**JANUARY 7, 1985**

One was out hacking wood to build a fire when she felt it. She set the axe down against the stump she was working on. A strange breeze caressed the back of her neck and ruffled her hair. One turned to meet it and was surprised to see something she hadn't seen in a long time.

A portal. 

Through the portal laid more of the dark, barren wasteland that she was used to. Where it went and why it appeared, she had no idea. She wasn't even sure that she was the one to have opened it. She stood, perplexed by its existence, for several minutes as she tried to determine what to do. 

She had been fairly content in her cabin in the woods. She had minimal run-ins with monsters. At the worst, she had barricaded herself inside the cabin while a pack of dog-like monsters attacked. But something deep down told her that it was time to move on to somewhere else. Somewhere through that portal. 

One cautiously approached the portal and tried to peer through it. From what she could see, it looked fairly similar to her current surroundings: dark, ashen, lots of trees. But something else caught her eye...a sign. 

Some sort of black vine had grown around the sign and covered most of the words. The only letters One could make out were "C-O-M-E". It almost felt like a deliberate invitation. Her curiosity got the better of her and she climbed through the portal. 

One drew the rusty pocket knife she had found in the cabin from her pocket as she approached the sign. She lifted a vine, which hissed in her grasp, and was about to cut it when she instinctively turned back towards the portal. It was gone. 

_Dammit, how could she be so stupid?_ Her backpack and supplies were back in the cabin and now she was fuck know's where with no safe haven and it was getting dark. Howls from packs of monster-dogs filled the air to signal the beginning of their nightly hunt. 

If One didn't get out of there she was screwed. She could see a town beneath the winding road that she was standing on, but the howls were closer to her than she was to any of the buildings. She needed to get back to the cabin. 

One faced the sign and focused as hard as she could on the visible letters. It had been a long time since she had tried to summon a portal and she almost forgot how to do it. Her lips moved as she absentmindedly mouthed the word "please" over and over. 

One's face lit up in surprise as she watched the "O" grow into a portal before the sign. She expected more darkness and death to greet her on the other side but what she saw instead was something she thought she'd never see again. Something that she thought was impossible.

One climbed through the portal and stepped foot onto a paved road. It was smooth, and the few cracks it had didn't have mysterious plants swaying to an invisible wind growing from between them. The air was fresh and she didn't inhale ash whenever she breathed it in. 

The sky was dark, not because of a permanent cloud layer, but because it was night. One had no memories of seeing stars, but she instinctively knew what the bright dots shining above her were. Her scarred, ashen skin felt like it was glowing under their radiant gleam. 

The same sign stood to One's right, unencumbered by vines. The letters, in their full white glory, read:

"Welcome to Hawkins".

~~~

**JANUARY 17, 1985**

Since One didn't have many items to take with her, it didn't take long for her to move back in with Hopper and Eleven. Joyce had helped her to pick out a few more outfits during her time living with the Byers', but One had refused to let her buy too much. Aside from feeling guilty about Joyce's generous offer, One was used to having minimal possessions.

It was a different feeling moving in this time since One was actually conscious for it. It felt strange, but good, to cross the threshold of the cabin with her new family. The cabin looked different now that it bore the weight of home. 

"Sorry, it'll be a little bit until you have your own room because I'll have to clear this out," Hopper apologized as he cracked open the door to the spare bedroom and a pile of boxes collapsed onto the floor. "For now you can take my room and I'll sleep on the couch."

"No," One immediately refused. "I want the couch."

Hopper tried to argue with One but she wouldn't allow it. One had spent the last fifteen years sleeping on far worse than a couch. The cot at the Lab and the assortment of rotted places in the Upside Down had taught her how to fall asleep anywhere. She slept more comfortably when she was uncomfortable.

Spread out on the couch, One began to think about the conversation they had had last night. After telling Joyce, Hopper, and Eleven about James there was a quiet lull. The three had been unsure how to respond, especially to the part about James' possible murder attempt on One. 

_"So this boy made my Will choke you?"_ Joyce had asked, after a moment of contemplation. 

_"Yes, I believe so,"_ One had answered.

 _"And this was the boy that El saw standing in the front yard?"_ Hopper had asked. 

_"Yes."_

_"I don't like him,"_ Hopper had concluded.

Then One's mind turned to another thought: _She had a date with Steve Harrington that night._ She shot up from the couch in a panic and found Eleven sitting by her feet. The two both gasped from startling each other.

"What's wrong?" Eleven asked, picking up on the worry in One's eye. 

"I have a date with Steve tonight," One sighed. 

One had a very limited understanding of dates. It was part of the missing knowledge that she had lost after living at the Lab and then suddenly reappeared like it had always been there. She knew that a date was when two people went somewhere to celebrate liking each other, but she was unsure of any of the customs or traditions that went along with it. 

"What are you going to wear?" Eleven asked curiously. 

One looked down at the outfit she was wearing; ripped jeans, a Pink Floyd t-shirt, and as always, James' leather jacket. "Probably just this."

Eleven immediately shook her head and disappeared into her room. A series of bangs and crashes followed before Eleven reappeared with something in hand. "Wear this," Eleven told One, holding out a red quarter-sleeve dress with a v-neck and white polka dots. "It's too big on me." 

One ran the fabric through her hands. She was overwhelmed by how beautiful the dress was. "Th-thank you," she stammered.

"Try it on!" Eleven ordered. 

One nodded her head and dashed for the bathroom. She came back out minutes later with a blush almost as red as the dress on her cheeks. Hopper turned the corner from the kitchen just in time to see her show off the dress and dropped the Eggo he was holding in his mouth in shock. 

"Wow," Hopper said. "You look beautiful." Eleven also gave her nod of approval. 

"Thanks," One blushed even more. She nervously smoothed the fabric against her legs and returned to the bathroom to change back into her previous outfit. She hoped that Steve liked the dress as much as Eleven and Hopper did.

~~~

Five hours later, it was almost time for One's date. She alternated between sitting on the couch and pacing the living room every few minutes. She'd bunch up the bottom of the dress skirt in her hand, smooth it out, and then bunch it up again. Her nerves were going haywire. 

Hopper watched One's erratic behavior from the doorway of his bedroom. He rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet trying to decide what to do. 

Hopper couldn't deny that it felt strange having his biological daughter back in his life. After Sarah's death and his divorce with Diane, he had really closed himself off to the world. Adopting Eleven had broke some substantial chinks in his wall, but he was still struggling with completely letting other people in. 

Hopper and One both jumped when a loud knock echoed through the cabin. Both had different emotions about Steve's arrival. _Excitement._ Annoyance. _Anxiety._ Irritation. 

Hopper watched and waited for One to open the door but she stood frozen by the couch. Another knock emanated through the space and Hopper made a move to open the door but Eleven beat him to it. 

"Hey El," Steve greeted Eleven. "Is One here?" One had called Steve earlier to tell him that she had moved back in with Hopper and Eleven but Steve had still embarrassingly stopped at the Byers' first. 

Eleven opened the door wider so that Steve could see One from the doorway. Once Steve laid eyes on One his jaw dropped open. 

The bright red tips of One's hair bled into her dress making her look like a beautiful flame. Her icy blue eyes glowed underneath her thick black lashes and her smile was accentuated by another pop of red on her lips. It was the first time One had ever worn make-up and she was grateful that Eleven had been there to help her. 

One had an equal reaction to seeing Steve. His silky hair swept back like flowing waves and his dark brown eyes nearly melted her into a puddle. He wore a pale pink button-up shirt under a dark gray suit with a floral tie. She was stunned silent. 

One and Steve stared at each other until Hopper interrupted their view. "I expect the two of you back by no later than 9:30 PM," Hopper said sternly. "At 9:31 I go searching, at 9:32 I find you, and by 9:33 you're dead. Understood?" 

Steve gulped and nodded his head vigorously. "Yes, sir."

"And don't even _think_ about going anywhere other than Enzo's," Hopper continued, his glare burrowing deep into Steve's eyes. 

"We won't." One's answer was accompanied by a roll of her eyes. She had finally found the ability to move again and was standing beside Hopper in the doorway. 

"You better take good care of her. If anything happens to her just remember that I'm the Chief and I have a gun and it would be all too easy for me to cover up your murder." Hopper's glare got more intense with every word. Steve had to hide the fact that his knees were trembling. 

"Alright, alright, we get it," One whined. She looked up to exchange a look with Hopper and he felt his features involuntarily soften. He couldn't glare at her like he glared at Steve. "We'll be okay, dad." 

That word. _Dad._ She had won.

Hopper stepped aside to let One leave, but not before stopping to hug her. "Have fun, kiddo," Hopper whispered between a slight smile. One nodded and smiled before following Steve towards his car.

Hopper stood in the doorway until One and Steve were in the car and driving off. He jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked down to find Eleven standing beside him. 

"They'll be okay," Eleven reassured him. 

Hopper looked outside one last time before shutting the door. "I know," he said.


	30. The Other Side

**JANUARY 17, 1985**

"So Chief Hopper is your dad?" Steve asked One from across the table at Enzo's. The restaurant was fairly crowded and they had had an uncomfortable fifteen minute wait squished between the Wheeler family on one of the tiny benches prior to getting a table.

"Yeah," One replied between bites of a complimentary bread stick.

"Wow," Steve said. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad you found your family, but I wish we could have gone on this date before you figured that out."

"He scares you, doesn't he?" One laughed.

"What? No...What are you--I don't even..." Steve sputtered as he tried to nonchalantly wave the notion away. He coughed into his fist before quietly following up with, "Yes."

One laughed again. "I'll make sure he doesn't kill you."

"So now that you know your birth name, what do you prefer to go by, One or Sarah?" Steve asked next.

One paused to think for a moment. She hadn't actually considered that question yet. She had responded to the number tattooed on her wrist for as long as she could remember. "I don't know...I guess either?"

"I like Sarah." Steve smiled and One couldn't help but smile back. That goofy, corny, cheesy smile.

"So...tell me about Steve," One said after her smiled had faded enough for her to move her lips.

"Well, _Steve_ graduated from high school and took the year off to work at an ice cream shoppe..." Steve begrudgingly answered.

"Better than living as an experiment in a Lab and then wandering the hellish landscape of an alternate dimension for fifteen years," One said to lighten the mood.

Steve couldn't help but crack a smile. "Well, I guess when you put it that way..."

The two shared a few awkward moments of silence while they tried to think of what to say next. One bit into another bread stick and Steve began playing with his fork. Thankfully, the waiter arrived with their food and they had something to occupy the next several minutes.

The silence quickly became filled with the sound of One slurping up her spaghetti. The end of one of the noodles smacked her nose, leaving a marinara splatter across her cheeks like red freckles. Steve witnessed the whole thing and nearly choked on the meatball he was eating.

"You're cute," Steve laughed into his napkin after he could breathe again.

After One finished wiping every last drop of sauce off her face she said, "You know I'm probably like two years older than you, right?"

"What can I say? I like cougars," Steve wiggled his eyebrows.

"Cougars?" One asked in confusion.

"It's when--uh, nevermind," Steve stammered before he ultimately decided not to answer.

"No, um, you should explain," One said. "There are so many references that I don't understand. I could only learn so much from the various non-rotted things I found in the Upside Down. I do know a surprising amount about puppet-related films, however."

Steve smiled and nodded his head before starting in on a long spiel about the origin of the term "cougar", which quickly turned into a conversation about other large cats, and then surprisingly became a discussion about the horrors of Broadway musicals.

"People who dressed like cats and sang about sacrificing themselves?" One asked with a wrinkled nose. "That sounds more terrifying than the Upside Down..."

"Yeah," Steve chuckled before his eyes glanced down and caught the time on his watch. "Oh crap!"

"What's wrong?"

"It's already 9:15, we should head back before your dad picks out a tombstone for me." Steve stood and dropped a few twenties on the table before walking around to One's side and pulling her chair out for her. In the process of doing so, he accidentally dropped one of the legs on his foot. One held back laughter as she helped him hobble out of Enzo's.

When they arrived back at the cabin, Steve released the breath he had been holding for almost the entirety of the drive. It was 9:29 when the cabin was finally in sight and he swore he could hear the rack of a shotgun from the other side.

"That's weird...Hopper's truck is gone," One observed.

"So he's not here?" Steve sighed in relief.

"Apparently not..." One studied the rest of the driveway and the surrounding cabin to figure out where he went but came up empty. "Want to come inside?"

"S-sure," Steve stammered. He couldn't be entirely sure that the missing truck wasn't just some trick and that Hopper wasn't hiding somewhere waiting to see what they would do when they thought they were alone. But he was willing to take the risk if it meant more time with One.

"El?" One called out as her foot crossed the door frame. The resounding silence informed One that Eleven must have gone with Hopper. Or was sleeping over at Max's.

If the latter was the case, One would have liked to think her sister would want to be there for their first official night living together as a family. But then again, it was hard to tell how family worked. The whole concept was still pretty new to her.

Unsure of what to do next, One and Steve sat together on the couch and stared at everything except each other.

"I had fun tonight," One said after the pattern of silence between them continued. "Thanks."

"Me too," Steve agreed with a smile.

"Would you like to go again...sometime?" One asked nervously.

"Yes, absolutely!" Steve answered almost too quickly. He tried to tone down his eagerness by following up with, "I mean, that sounds cool. I'll check my calendar."

One tried to minimize the ever-growing smile on her cheeks. "Maybe we can see a movie next time? I don't really have any memories of going to the movie theater..."

"I can't stop him."

"I'm sorry, is that a movie?" One asked in confusion. When Steve didn't answer, One waved a hand in front of his strangely vacant face. "Steve?"

"No."

"No?"

Steve turned to look at One with a glassy gaze. His eyes were still the same chocolate brown she remembered, but somebody else seemed to be staring at her through them.

"Steve, what's going on?" One tried to scoot further away from him on the couch but was stopped when Steve grabbed her wrist.

"I'm not Steve," Steve answered. Like with his eyes, she recognized his voice, but the words seemed to be coming from someone else. "Not right now."

"Then who are you?" One was growing increasingly angry. She didn't like whatever game this was, regardless of who she was playing it with. A blue tinge grew on her fingers but immediately dissipated when "Steve" answered.

"James."

A chill surrounded One like a wintry blanket and ferociously burrowed its way through her skin and into her veins. Teeth chattering, she could only manage three words: "But you're dead."

"No, I survived," James/Steve answered.

"But how?"

"I don't have time to explain, he's coming, and I can't stop him."

The word "coming" resonated with One. Could this be the answer from the lights? "Papa?"

"Yes."

"What does he want?"

"You."

You. That word echoed in One's mind. "Me? Why? When is he coming? What is he going to do?" 

Her questions went unanswered however, because just then Steve came back to. "Holy shit, what just happened? My spine felt weird and then my mouth was moving but I wasn't controlling it. It felt like I was trapped in my own body."

"James," One answered with a deep sigh.

"James?" Steve suddenly remembered the night he asked One out, finding her running around the Byers' yard yelling for someone named "James". Was this the same guy?

"I'm sorry, Steve, this was a mistake," One apologized. "You should go home."

"What? What are you talking about?" 

"I can't pull you into this. It's too dangerous." 

"Dangerous? This isn't my first rodeo with the Upside Down," Steve argued. "I wield a pretty mean spiked bat." 

Even with the dire circumstances hanging above their heads, One couldn't help but laugh. "I don't know..."

"Look," Steve began as he turned to look her in the eyes. "I won't lie, all of this scares the shit out of me. But I would fight off a thousand monsters and evil scientists if it meant I got to spend more time with you." 

"Okay..." One caved with a bright blush on her cheeks. 

"But, like, you do have powers though, right?" Steve asked playfully. "I'd be more of a back-up?" 

One laughed again and batted him on the shoulder. Steve joined in on the laughter before pushing himself forward and pressing his mouth against hers. One was too shocked to close her eyes until several moments later, but once she finally did, she got lost in the softness of Steve's lips. 

One felt ripples move down her arms and legs as tiny goosebumps formed across her skin. Her surroundings all melted and blended together into a blurry blob, with her and Steve at the center. Everything was happiness and perfection and...deja vu?

One's eyes shot open and she broke the seal between their lips to look wildly around the room.

"What's wrong?" Steve asked. 

One swung her head towards the bookcase in the corner and scanned the books until she reached the top shelf. Her finger shot forward and Steve followed it to find a tiny whirring portal between a copy of _The Shining_ and _Murder on the Orient Express._

"Oh shit," Steve whispered. 

Inside the portal, they could see a tiny One staring back at them. Past One. The portal had only showed them a week into the future. 

"That means..." One's sentence trailed off as a low rumbling began to shake the cabin. One and Steve instinctively reached for each other's hands and clasped them together tight. 

The shaking intensified and the rumbling sound got louder and louder. Loose items began to tremble and clatter until they fell over or fell off of whatever they were sitting on. One could hear several dishes breaking in the cupboards and the shattering of photo frames dropping to the ground.

When One looked back at the portal she saw the party clustered around Past One. This was her cue. One grabbed a chair from the kitchen and dragged it over to the bookshelf. She clambered up onto it and stared into the portal. 

Now she understood why her eyes had looked so different when she was staring at herself from the other side of the portal. They had looked changed. _Ancient._ It was because she remembered. She remembered her family, her former life. 

Once Past One and the Past Party were staring back at her, she gave them her warning:

"Coming."


	31. Spy Gone Awry

**JANUARY 17, 1985**

Hopper lasted exactly thirty-six minutes and eleven seconds before he decided he was going to spy on One and Steve's date. 

"Wanna go get ice cream?" Hopper asked Eleven, who was watching TV in the living room. She eagerly nodded her head and hopped up from the couch to grab her coat. 

Hopper and Eleven hummed along to ABBA in the truck as they cruised down the main road towards downtown Hawkins. Eleven watched the snow-capped buildings pass by in a blur until something occurred to her. 

"Passed ice cream?" Eleven asked as she turned to look at Hopper.

"Yeah, um, I thought we'd check out the one in town," Hopper answered. 

"One by Enzo's...?" Eleven asked suspiciously. 

"Oh, um, is it?" Hopper scratched his chin nervously and tried to avoid Eleven's inquisitive gaze. "I completely forgot about that."

"Family trusts each other," Eleven reminded Hopper with an arched brow and a knowing look. 

"Of course I trust One--Sarah," Hopper corrected himself. It was going to take a little bit to get used to that. "Steve on the other hand..."

"But you liked Steve."

"I did until he started liking my daughter."

Eleven rolled her eyes. This attitude was all too familiar to her, having witnessed Hopper act the same way towards Mike several times. 

Hopper caught the eye roll and the look of disappointment in his peripheral and decided to explain himself. "I'm just a little upset that she's spending our first night as a family with a boy instead of us."

"Lots of time to be family," Eleven countered. 

"But I've already lost so much time with her," Hopper argued with a tremor in his voice. He looked away as he felt a tear build up in his eye. 

A softness overtook Eleven's face once she realized that Hopper truly was upset. "I'm sorry," Eleven apologized as she rested a hand on his arm. Hopper reached over and put his hand on top of hers. He squeezed it to let her know that he was alright. 

"I'm thankful for you, kid," Hopper smiled at Eleven. His smile quickly disappeared when he realized that something was wrong with the truck. "Ah, shit!" 

A sputtering sound erupted from the engine and Hopper felt the truck slowly shut down. Thankfully, Hopper was able to turn it over to the side of the road before it stalled out. Angry, Hopper hit his hands against the steering wheel which accidentally made the horn honk an equally angry response. 

Hopper looked up at the fuel gauge and noticed that it was on empty. "What the hell, I just filled this yesterday." 

Hopper hopped out of the truck to investigate with his flashlight. When he shined the beam down the side of the cab he immediately noticed that the fuel door was open. Upon closer observation, he also noticed that the gas cap was off. Had he just completely forgotten to put it back on or had somebody tampered with his truck?

Hopper aimed the flashlight down the road, but did not see any rainbow glares coming off the pavement that would indicate a gas leak. If his fuel line wasn't cut, did that mean somebody had siphoned his gas? Why? Where did they not want him to go?

"Stay right here and lock the doors," Hopper instructed Eleven. "I'm going to go get gas, I'll be right back." 

Luckily they were only a mile and a half from the nearest gas station so if he maintained a good clip he wouldn't be leaving Eleven alone for more than an hour. During this jog/speed walk he had quite a bit of time to think over the events of the last few days and his thoughts centered around the discovery that Sarah was alive. 

It was no secret to anyone in town that Hopper had not grieved Sarah's "death" well. He had relied heavily on chemical companions to erase the searing pain in his heart. For him, it had been more than just the death of his daughter. It had been the death of his marriage, his career, and to some extent, him. 

Hopper had thought that the return of his daughter would negate the need for his vices, but he craved a drink now more than ever. Adopting Eleven had been a good distraction from the booze and the pills, but they never really disappeared, he just hid them better. Having Sarah back in his life presented him with a terrible reality: he could lose her all over again. 

Something was clearly following Sarah from her past, and Hopper had a feeling that it was more than just Dr. Brenner. He hadn't been there to protect her before, how would he protect her now? He had no idea what he was up against. 

There was also the possibility of losing Sarah in a different way. She was twenty-one. When Hopper was her age he had been out of his parents' house for years. What if her and Steve fell in love and got married and moved far away and forgot all about Hopper? 

Out of the two possibilities, he didn't know which one hurt more. 

When Hopper returned to the truck with the fuel can he found Eleven nearly vibrating in the front seat from the cold. He rushed to fill the truck and get it started so that her teeth would stop chattering like jackhammers.

"How are you doing, kid?" Hopper asked, shivering himself, as he hopped in the front seat. 

"Cold," Eleven responded. Her answer was accompanied by the clicking of her teeth. 

"I know, I'm sorry," Hopper said. "We'll get warmed up and then we'll go get ice cream."

Eleven had limited mobility since her muscles were frozen stiff from the cold, but she managed to vigorously shake her head no. The thought of more coldness made her want to cry. 

"Or we'll just go home and make hot chocolate," Hopper offered instead. Eleven vigorously shook her head yes.

Hopper glanced down at the clock and noticed that it read 9:33. _Shit._ That meant he wouldn't be home to greet Steve and Sarah when they returned from their date. What if they were already there? _Alone._

Once they were back on the road, Hopper gunned it for home. If Steve was smart, he wouldn't be there when they arrived.

~~~

When they turned the bend, Hopper immediately noticed Steve's car sitting in the driveway. His knuckles turned white as he clenched the steering wheel tighter. _Steve was even dumber than he thought._

The closer they got to the cabin, the more Hopper forgot about Steve's car and began to focus on a new issue: loud music was pumping from inside the cabin and the structure itself was visibly shaking. _Were they having a party?_

Hopper pushed past the desire to nick Steve's car as he parked his truck next to it. He couldn't climb out of the car fast enough and nearly got tangled in his seat belt in the process. Eleven slowly unbuckled and followed after behind him, slightly fearful of the wrath she was sure she was about to see.

The doorknob vibrated under Hopper's grip, nearly making his hand go numb. He yanked against the door but it wouldn't budge. He grabbed his keys and struggled to line up the key with the ever-moving keyhole. After several attempts, he finally managed to plunge it in but found that he couldn't twist it. The doorknob was jammed.

"Hey! Open up in there!" Hopper yelled and hit the door with his fists. He wasn't sure that they would be able to hear him over the loud music, but he continued to yell anyways. After several curse words and no response, Hopper gave up. "Steve Harrington is a dead man," Hopper mumbled as he turned to find a window to break into. 

"Here," Eleven said, stopping him mid-step. "Let me." 

Hopper stepped aside and watched Eleven work her magic. Her brows furrowed as she focused on the grain of the wood, her outstretched hand shaking from the intense concentration. A few seconds and a nose bleed later, the door had popped open. 

At the exact same time that Eleven opened the door, the music stopped and the cabin ceased shaking. Through the door frame Hopper could see Steve and Sarah staring back at him. Their faces construed a variety of emotions: fear, confusion, anger, relief...

"What in the hell happened here?" Hopper shouted. 

Sarah and Steve shared a look before Sarah answered. "It's begun..."


	32. Thriller Night

**JANUARY 17, 1985**

The shaking became so intense that One lost her balance and fell off the stool. Steve tried to get to her to check on her but had troubles staying upright and knocked into several pieces of furniture along the way.

After One had assessed herself to make sure she was still in one piece, she looked up to the top shelf and was disappointed to see that the portal was gone.

"Are you okay?" Steve called out from the spot where he had fallen halfway across the living room.

"Yeah, I'm fine," One answered. Her voice sounded like she was talking into a fan.

One and Steve became startled when a sound even louder than the rattling began to fill the room. The howling of wolves accompanied by musical beats entered their ears as _Thriller_ by Michael Jackson blasted through the space and nearly deafened the two. One and Steve threw their hands over their ears but the music didn't get any quieter.

♫ _It's close to midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark..._ ♪

Just as Steve was about to ask what the hell was going on, the front door slammed open so hard that it was nearly torn off its hinges. One's mouth dropped open as a haunting and familiar sight greeted her from the other side. 

♫ _Under the moonlight you see a sight that almost stops your heart..._ ♪

Dark clouds of smoke licked at the door frame and poured into the room in slow waves. A rotten smell introduced itself to their nostrils and the lights blinked out their own sporadic dance. But what was more terrifying than once again facing the hellish nightmare of the Upside Down was the man standing inside it. 

♫ _You try to scream but terror takes the sound before you make it..._ ♪

"Hello One," Dr. Brenner smiled. The creepy smile accentuated a scratch that worked its way up from the top of his mouth to the spot where his left eye was supposed to be. In place of his eye was a black hole that seemed to go on forever. He may have survived, but the Upside Down hadn't left him unscathed. 

♫ _You start to freeze as horror looks you right between the eyes, you're paralyzed..._ ♪

"No," One whispered, eyes wide and brimmed with fear.

"My favorite subject," Dr. Brenner continued to speak. "I've missed you."

One swallowed the lump of fear that had manifested itself in her throat. She had to be brave. "I haven't missed you," One retorted.

Dr. Brenner's smile grew as he chuckled at her response. "We were supposed to do great things together. We still can."

"Never," One spat. 

"What are _you_...without _me?_ " Dr. Brenner asked. 

"A human being with a family and friends who love her." One could feel the old anger and hatred she had harbored once more brewing inside her. What was _she_ without _him?_ No. What was _he_ without _her?_

"Your portals haven't been working the same since you left the Lab, have they?" 

"How did you..." One's anger and bravery were jolted by his question. 

"Come back to me, my child, and I can help you grow your powers to be stronger than they ever were." Dr. Brenner held his arms out wide to her. "We can be a family again."

" _Family?_ " One scoffed. "You were never my family, you lied to me!"

"And you think Jim Hopper is your family?" Dr. Brenner retorted. "The pathetic, drugged-up, alcoholic Chief of police? You would have been wasted if you had stayed with that man. I lied to you to keep you safe. I am the only person who has ever cared about you." 

"That's not true!" Steve's voice entered the conversation and surprised both One and Dr. Brenner. "I care about her!" 

"Oh look, you've made another little friend." Dr. Brenner's voice oozed with fake sincerity. "Just like Seven." Dr. Brenner stepped aside to allow another person to come into view. They looked beaten and bedraggled, but even with their head hung down One could still recognize them in a heartbeat. 

"James!" One shouted. He didn't seem to register her voice because his chin remained attached to his chest. "What have you done to him?"

"Why don't you come see for yourself," Dr. Brenner cackled. An ominous echo followed after that would haunt One for the rest of her life. 

Steve watched One's movements closely, worried of what she might do. He could see in her face and the twitches of her muscles that she was highly considering taking up Dr. Brenner's offer. He tried to come up with a plan to prevent her from acting drastically but ultimately he knew he couldn't stop her. She was closer to the portal than he was to her and the shaking was still too intense for him to remain stabilized. He could only hope for a miracle. 

And somehow a miracle came. The portal was shattered as the door swung sharply on its hinges from the opposite way. The Upside Down was replaced with the woods, and Dr. Brenner and James were replaced with Hopper and Eleven. The music immediately stopped but not without leaving one last ominous message:

♫ _Darkness falls across the land, the midnight hour is close at hand...Creatures crawl in search of blood to terrorize y'alls neighborhood..._ ♪ 

"What in the hell happened here?" Hopper shouted at them through the door frame.

One looked to Steve before answering, "It's begun."

"What's begun?" Hopper asked as he stepped inside. He began to inspect the door but gave up on it ever functionally working again pretty quickly. 

"Dr. Brenner appeared to us in a portal...or a mirage..." One began to explain. Now that she thought of it, she wasn't sure that Papa and James had ever been there to begin with. How could Hopper and Eleven have opened the door if it had already been open? Answer: it hadn't. "He has James."

"Seven?" Eleven asked. 

"Yes, he's in trouble," One answered.

"I don't like this Seven kid, or whatever his name is," Hopper said to no one in particular. One ignored this comment.

"He needs our help! _My_ help!" One exasperated and fell onto the couch in frustration. She couldn't stop seeing James' limp form standing beside Papa. "I need to go after him."

"We can't go running into the Upside Down without a plan," Steve argued, sitting down next to One on the couch. "That was clearly a trap. You heard Dr. Brenner, he wants you back as part of his 'weird little family'."

"He _what?_ " Hopper exclaimed. 

"Yeah, he called you a 'pathetic, drugged-up alcoholic' too," Steve mentioned.

Hopper blinked his eyes several times in disbelief and opened and closed his mouth as if looking for the words to say. He could feel his blood boiling. Before he could manage to say anything, however, One occupied the space with her voice. 

"I should go alone," One said determinedly. "It's too dangerous and I have powers." 

"No, no, that's not a good plan..." Steve tried to argue. 

" _Absolutely_ not," Hopper added. 

Steve and Hopper continued to bicker aimlessly until Eleven interrupted them. "I'm coming with," she stated. "I have powers too." 

One looked at Eleven with a mix of curiosity and appreciation. She felt unable to argue with Eleven both because she could hear the determination in her voice and because One couldn't deny that having powered back-up would be helpful. 

One knew that the same anger that lived within her also burned inside Eleven. Papa had taken everything from Eleven as well and One couldn't deny her her revenge. They would take down Papa and save James _together._

"Okay," One said with a slow nod. "Eleven and I will go together, but we need to go soon."

"Did you not hear me?" Hopper asked incredulously. " _You're_ not going and _you're_ not going and that's final." With each "you're" he pointed aggressively at One and Eleven. 

"I can't just leave him--" One began to argue when Hopper cut her off.

"No, nuh-uh, I'm not losing you again," Hopper exclaimed. "Either of you." 

"Why don't we all go? Then nobody is leaving anybody," Steve recommended. He was getting irritated with all the arguing when they should be spending that time planning. "I agree with Sarah, we can't just leave her friend to die. But we're going to need all the help we can get, powers or no powers." 

"Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin, Max?" Eleven asked. 

Steve nodded his head. "Anyone and everyone that will help." 

Steve looked to One for confirmation of his plan but she found herself unable to speak. She rubbed the back of her neck nervously while her knees bounced up and down like pogo sticks. She would do whatever it took to save James but she was terrified of risking the lives of her friends and family. 

"Okay," One said at long last. Her response was met with a long sigh from Hopper but he didn't contest it. "But I'm in charge."

"Deal," Steve agreed immediately.

"Deal," agreed Eleven pretty soon after.

That left Hopper. 

"Dad?" One asked. She tried to catch Hopper's gaze as it floated around the room and up to the ceiling. Eventually it fell back down and landed on One. 

"Deal."


	33. Bourbon Blues

**JANUARY 18, 1985**

"Welcome to the party officially, Sarah Hopper," Mike congratulated One after she explained her recent discovery and the encounter with Dr. Brenner to the rest of the group. They were gathered at Hopper's cabin to strategize on how to save James.

Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Eleven crowded around One and embraced her in a group hug. Joyce and Hopper hung back with smiles on their faces and Steve moved in for his own hug after the group dispersed.

"So are you guys like a couple now?" Lucas asked, eyeing up One and Steve as their hug lingered. The two immediately blushed and put some distance between each other.

"What? I don't know what you're talking about..." Steve stammered. His voice didn't do well to hide his embarrassment. He had been hoping for a better time to reveal that information to the rest of the party.

"Dustin told us," Max spoke up.

Steve looked sharply at his little curly-haired companion in the corner, making it Dustin's turn to glow beet red. " _Henderson,_ " Steve scolded.

"Sorry, I was excited for you guys," Dustin tried to defend himself.

" _Anyways,_ " Hopper coughed in an attempt to steer the conversation back on track. "The only way we're going to be able to beat Brenner is if we draw him out of the Upside Down and onto our turf."

"How do we do that?" Joyce asked.

"Me," One answered. "I'll open a portal and act as bait."

"How do we know that will work?"

"He wants me," One continued to explain. "If I stand far enough outside the portal he'll leave it to get to me. And if he's reluctant, then El steps in to pull him out." One looked to Eleven, who gave her a decisive nod. 

"And that's where we come in?" Will asked. 

"Yes," One nodded. "We'll need help trapping him." 

"But how?" Lucas asked. 

"What if we rig a net above the portal?" Mike recommended. "And then when Brenner steps under it we pull it down on top of him?" 

"That could work..." One thought aloud. 

"Ooh, we could stake it down like a tent!" Max suggested. "Each of us could grab a corner and hammer the net into the ground so he can't get up."

"And then I shoot him in the face," Hopper added, patting the gun at his side. 

"Don't get too excited, Hop," Joyce cautioned him. "What if he's got James hidden somewhere? If he's dead we won't be able to find him." 

Hopper wanted to argue but her point was too valid. "Fine, I don't shoot him...yet."

"We need to be careful," One advised the party. "Something tells me that Pa--Brenner is controlling James. I think he was the reason that James forced Will to choke me."

"But why would Brenner want you dead?" Steve asked. "He said he wanted you to join him."

"I don't know..." One sighed. "There's still a lot of this that isn't adding up, but either way we need to be prepared." The rest of the party agreed by nodding their heads in unison.

"So we lure Brenner out...trap him with a net...and then what?" Dustin asked, recapping the plan. 

One glanced around the group before confidently saying, "And then we rescue James."

"Oh geez, that means going into the Upside Down, doesn't it?" Dustin asked, picking up on where One was going with her plan. 

"I'll go in," One responded determinedly. She couldn't deny that the idea of revisiting that hellscape terrified her, but she would do anything to save James. She had already broken a promise to find James once, she wouldn't make the same mistake again. "I spent eight years in there, I can handle another couple minutes."

"Me too," Eleven joined. She caught One's eye and gave her a confident smile. 

"Well if you two are going, then I'm going," Hopper announced. "I've gotta protect my girls." Eleven and One both moved over to embrace him in a side hug. He pulled them in close as they leaned their heads against his shoulders.

"Count me in," Steve added. He made a move to join the team hug by One's side but Hopper gave him a glare that sent him backwards.

"Are you guys sure you're willing to do this? It's going to be dangerous. People could die." One pulled away from Hopper's side to address the room. Worry sewed itself into her features as she took another look at each and every person standing before her. She couldn't imagine losing a single one of them. 

"That's an average Tuesday for us," Joyce said with a comforting smile, speaking for the party.

~~~

After the party dispersed and everyone departed for their respective homes, it was just the Hopper family left. Their guests left behind a weight in the air that sat on One's, Hopper's, and Eleven's shoulders. Something big was coming, and while they should be utilizing what time they had left to rest, Hopper and One found themselves wide awake at the kitchen table with a bottle of bourbon between them.

Despite Eleven's protests, Hopper had sent her to bed so that he could have some time alone with One. He needed to figure out where she was at with everything and whether she was okay. He also felt like that they hadn't been able to fully comprehend their newfound relationship and that this would present an opportune time to do so.

One sloshed the golden liquid around in her whiskey glass as Hopper poured one for himself. She lifted it to her nose and took a sniff, recoiling slightly from the sharp smell. It elicited a flashback of her sitting alone in the Upside Down, a bottle similar to what was in Hopper's hand at her hip, empty. 

Alcohol was no stranger to One. It was one of the few things that withheld the rot of the Upside Down. Her first experience with it included James. They had found a bottle of vodka in the pantry of one of the houses they crashed in. They had decided to try celebratory sips to congratulate themselves on defeating another demogorgon earlier that day. Upon touching their lips, the clear liquid was immediately spat back out and the two erupted into a fit of laughter. It was one of One's favorite memories. 

After time it became a lot easier to digest the stuff. One had horded a stash of it at her cabin in Minnesota to quell the pain of losing James. The sweet release it brought was only ever temporary though. She drank anything and everything she could find until she was wading in a sea of glass bottles. So when Hopper offered her a glass, One said yes before she could even register that her mouth had moved. 

Hopper and One each stared into their glasses, unaware that the other was also witnessing visions in the swirling substance. _Death, pain, loss..._ They had yet to discover how similar they were.

"Cheers," Hopper said with a half-smile, lifting his glass into the air as One silently mimicked him. Hopper pressed the glass to his lips but before he could take a sip he stopped. "Wait, you're twenty-one, right?" 

"You tell me," One responded, taking a sip and letting the familiar warmth of the bourbon trickle down her throat. "You're the one with my birth certificate."

Hopper decided not to question it and took a sip himself. "So, how are you doing with all of this? You feeling good about the plan?"

"As good as I can," One answered solemnly.

"You know, we don't have to do this. You don't have to do this," Hopper said, reaching out to set a hand on top of One's hand, which was resting on the table.

"Let's...just not talk about it." One slowly pulled her hand out from under his to take another sip. 

Hopper tried not to take the movement personally. "What do you want to talk about?" 

One stared down into her glass at the bourbon hurricane she had created with pursed lips and a thoughtful look. "Is there something going on between you and Mrs. Byers?" 

Hopper spat his whiskey back into his glass, eliciting a sly smile and a chuckle from One. "You can't give me any shit for dating Steve if you weren't even going to tell me about Joyce."

"I can too, I'm your father," Hopper argued. The two laughed until their smiles sombered. "But I promise I'll try to be more open with you in the future if you agree to do the same."

"I promise," One agreed. The two clinked their glasses together to cement the agreement.

Another lull in the conversation presented itself while Hopper and One tried to think of what to say next. 

"What do you think--" One began to ask before she stopped herself and shook her head. "Nevermind."

"No, go ahead," Hopper encouraged her.

"What do you think it would have been like if Brenner hadn't kidnapped me? If I had grown up with you and mom?" One asked absentmindedly into the cabin air. She wasn't sure if she was asking Hopper, asking herself, or asking the universe.

One still couldn't decipher her connection with Hopper. She had memories of him being her father but she also had memories of not having those memories. It felt like somebody had planted another person's memories in her mind. Perhaps they belonged to the real Sarah Hopper and she was just an intruder. 

But deep down One knew that this wasn't true; there was a realness to the memories, to the connection she felt to Hopper, that told her she really was his daughter. Still another issue presented itself: time. So much time had passed and so many things had happened since those memories of her childhood. She wanted her reality to feel the same as it did in her memories but she wasn't sure if it did, or if it ever would again. 

"Different," Hopper answered after a moment of contemplation. That exact scenario had been all he could think about for the past couple days. 

"Better?"

"Definitely better."

One nodded her head and took another sip. And then another sip. And another sip. Soon the glass was empty and she reached for the bottle to pour herself another glass but Hopper beat her to it. 

"I think that's enough for tonight," Hopper said, moving the bottle out of her reach. One's fingers lingered in the air for a moment before falling back to the table. A vacant glare filled One's eyes and her hand began to tremble. "Are you okay?" 

"I-I need it." One choked on her words and her eyes never left the bottle. Hopper looked back and forth between One and the whiskey before he made the connection. His face softened once he realized that she was dealing with the same issues that he did. 

"Hey, hey." Hopper quickly moved from his chair to kneeling by her side. He grabbed her hands in his and looked into her wet eyes. "It's okay, it's okay. I'm here for you. We're all here for you." 

"I need to do this, but I'm scared." A single tear rolled down One's cheeks and Hopper wiped it away. 

"You're not the only one. I'm scared shitless. But this?" Hopper stopped to gesture towards the bottle of bourbon. "This isn't going to help you. Trust me, I know." 

One opened her mouth as if to say something but decided against it. She knew Hopper was right but she didn't want to admit it. It was just easier to drink. 

"Think of this bourbon as Brenner," Hopper began after he grabbed the bottle off the table. "It pretends to care about you, to want your best interests...but its only goal is to ruin you. To take away everything that _actually_ matters. Everything that _actually_ loves you. Understand?"

One nodded her head, shaking loose a few more tears before she collapsed onto Hopper's shoulder and the dam broke. Hopper felt his sleeve soaking through but he didn't care. 

"We'll get through this together," Hopper whispered between his own tears as he stroked One's hair.


	34. Destiny

**JANUARY 19, 1985**

"I can't believe we're dealing with this Upside Down bullshit again," Dustin complained as he walked the street curb like a tightrope. He nearly lost his balance a few times and had to lean against an annoyed Lucas to ensure that he didn't fall onto the rough pavement.

"Nobody said you _had_ to help," Lucas reminded him with a roll of his eyes. After Dustin pushed against him for the third time, Lucas shoved him off the curb and Dustin completed a motion that looked eerily similar to Michael Jackson's moonwalk to ensure that he didn't eat dirt.

"Well, of course I'm _going_ to help," Dustin retorted after he regained his footing and moved to the other end of the group away from Lucas. "I just thought we'd have a little bit longer between the craziness. It's only been _nine weeks_ since El closed the gate at the Lab."

"One is our friend, she needs us," Mike said. His hands anxiously ran up and down his backpack straps as he tried to brush aside the impending danger coming their way.

"You mean Sarah," Will corrected him.

"Yeah, shit, sorry." Mike shook his head as if to shake off the mistake. "Sarah."

"That's pretty cool that El has an actual sister now," Max changed the subject.

"And that Hopper found his daughter," Lucas added.

"Yeah, he's been such a pain lately," Mike said. "Maybe having Sarah back will help him to cool off."

"I can't imagine what it's like for Steve, dating the Chief's daughter," Lucas laughed as he attempted to picture Hopper reaming Steve out.

"Did you see how they interacted at the strategizing session?" Dustin chuckled. "Hopper totally gave Steve the cold shoulder."

"He's just being protective," Will argued. "He just got his daughter back, it's got to be hard. You guys all know how crazy my mom was when I came back."

The group silently nodded their heads in agreement as they continued to walk towards Mike's house. Today was their last day of normalcy before they were going to initiate the plan and they wanted to spend it working on their D&D campaign.

Hopper had insisted on Eleven and One staying at home so he could keep a watchful eye on them. While their plan was to take the fight to Dr. Brenner, he didn't trust that the doctor wouldn't make an impromptu appearance beforehand.

"Where's Jonathan and Nancy with all of this?" Dustin asked the group. "They helped last time, are they going to help again?"

"Jonathan has been spending a lot of time with Nancy lately and my mom doesn't want to pull him into it, so we haven't told him," Will answered.

"Ditto for Nancy," Mike responded. "I hardly ever see her anymore. She's too busy making out with Jonathan." Mike proceeded to make sloppy kissing noises, much to the disgust of the rest of the group.

Once they reached Mike's house and were settled into the basement, the conversation once more steered itself towards the topic of One and Steve.

"Guess who else is probably making out a lot?" Lucas asked with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "Steve and Sarah."

"Speaking of, you guys owe me for calling that one so pay up," Dustin reminded the group.

"I'm not paying up just yet," Max declared, defiantly crossing her arms. Mike, Dustin, Will, and Lucas looked to her in surprise.

"Why not?"

"Because I don't think it's going to last," Max explained. She tilted her chin up and stared down upon her fellow group mates with an all-knowing look.

"Oh come on, they're totally in love," Dustin argued. He wouldn't hear such blasphemy about his friend. Especially after Nancy dumped him for Jonathan. Steve deserved a win in Dustin's book.

" _Please,_ " Max scoffed. "If she's so in love with Steve, then why are we running into the Upside Down to save James? You can't go all that time in an empty dimension with another person and _not_ fall in love with them."

"Guys, tell her how crazy she's being," Dustin pleaded with the group. Each individual looked away when Dustin tried to meet their eyes.

"I don't know, she makes some pretty good points..." Lucas said. "Plus, we all know you had a hand in getting Steve and Sarah together so I don't think the bet is entirely fair."

"A hand in it?" Dustin scoffed and waved off the notion. "A toe, _maybe._ But not a hand."

"I hate to be that guy yet again," Will interrupted their squabbling. "but can we _please_ get on with the campaign?"

"We can once Max admits that I'm right and she's wrong," Dustin answered, alighting a series of groans from the rest of the group who began to set up for the campaign anyways. "Guys?"

~~~

"Nervous?" Eleven asked One as they sat together on the couch in the living room. Hopper had quarantined them inside all day while he searched around the cabin for the supplies they'd need to capture Dr. Brenner and save James. He wanted to make sure they were within reach if something were to happen.

One stared ahead at the floating dust particles dancing in the sun beams that fell through the window and nodded her head. Nervous wasn't entirely the right word though. _Terrified_ was more like it. There were so many things that could go wrong. So many people that could get hurt.

Eleven scooted closer to One on the couch so that their legs were touching. She watched One's face closely, noting the precise curves of her profile and counting every flutter of her eyelashes. A girl of few words (mostly because she didn't have that many to say), Eleven preferred to observe. She had done the same thing with Hopper several times before, and studying One now she could see traces of him within her features.

They shared the same eyes. And the same nose. But not the same mouth. Eleven had found hidden pictures of Diane in the mess of boxes that had once occupied One's new room and she could tell that One had inherited her smile from her mother. Along with her golden blonde hair. Eleven was still working with a limited understanding of beauty but she knew that One was pretty.

"How are you doing?" One turned to ask Eleven, presenting Eleven with a new angle to study.

"Good," Eleven answered thoughtfully. "Ready."

"To take down Papa?"

Eleven answered with a small but determined nod. One began to grow curious about Eleven's time in the Lab. She assumed that Eleven had been subjected to the same torture the she had, but nevertheless she needed answers. 

"Did he...did he ever give you drugs that made you forget things?" One asked slowly, unsure of exactly how to word it. A confused look spanned Eleven's face as she slowly shook her head no. One felt the need to further clarify, "To forget your life before he took you?"

"Didn't have life before," Eleven answered innocently. "I was a baby."

A sudden memory struck One of an earlier experience in the Lab; Dr. Brenner carrying a crying infant down the hallway outside her door. _She had met Eleven before._ Could that be why she knew to ask her for help on the night she had returned to this world? Or was it because of the familiar pain she had recognized in Eleven's eyes? A pain that can only be accrued from living under Dr. Brenner's wrath?

"I saw you," One said. "Before, in the Lab." 

"You did?" Eleven asked in surprise. 

"Yeah, only for a moment," One continued to explain. "But I know it was you." 

Eleven reached her hand out for One's, which was fidgeting anxiously in her lap. "Destiny," she said with a smile. The sound of Joyce yelling at Hopper outside broke their profound moment and sent them into a fit of giggles. 

"Hop, put that down!" Joyce's voice yelled. "You're going to stab yourself! Or worse, you're going to stab me!" 

"I'm fine, Joyce!" Hopper shouted back. "The only one who is going to hurt themselves is you after you give yourself a fucking heart attack."

" _The only one who is going to hurt themselves is you after you give yourself a fucking heart attack,_ " One imitated Hopper. She adopted a stern look on her face and put her finger beneath her nose to mimic his moustache. Eleven fell off the couch and rolled onto the ground clutching her stomach from laughter.

"Just like him," Eleven said between laughs. 

One joined Eleven on the ground and the two continued to smile and laugh until Hopper came inside to find them like that. "What's so funny?" he asked with a confused smile. 

One and Eleven looked at each other before bursting out in laughter once again. Hopper just rolled his eyes and made his way into the kitchen once he had given up on getting an answer, their giggles following him the entire way. 

One reached out and intertwined her fingers in Eleven's as they continued to get lost in their happiness. It became one of One's favorite memories. _And one of her last good ones._


	35. Ready Set Go

**????? ??, ????**

"Hello?" One's voice echoed through the darkness as she weaved between sinister trees, stained black by the perpetual ash falling around her. James' ripped leather jacket snagged on taunting branches, and she continuously batted away clumps of hair banded together by dried blood to keep her vision clear. "Steve? Dad? El? _Anybody?_ "

Monstrous shrieks echoed a response, crying for blood and death in the empty wasteland. One's pulse quickened with her pace as she stumbled through the evil wood. After nearly tripping over an upturned root, she took pause and tried to summon a portal. Crackles of light erupted before immediately fading away. _She was out of juice._

One knew where she was but she didn't know _where_ she was, let alone _when_ she was. All she could do was continue to trek away from the hungry howls until she had enough energy to get herself the hell out of there. A large _crack_ echoed thirty feet to her left and she found herself praying that it would be soon.

One looked up at the monotonous sky above and noticed that the tops of the leafless trees curled in towards her, either to shield her or to eat her. Black weeds grew in place of grass and licked at her ankles as she tread over them; tasting her exposed, bloody skin. With every step, the forest seemed to shrink smaller and smaller. She had almost forgotten exactly how ominous this place was. 

When the claustrophobia was seconds away from consuming One, a clearing finally revealed itself to her in the distance. She sprinted for the minimal light that shined through it, uprooting the weeds that wrapped themselves around her and tried to hold her back. The forest wouldn't hold her prisoner anymore. 

When One came to the other side of the clearing, the scene before her sent her careening back into her memories. _Small gray house. Broken down green Pinto. Tattered clothesline whipping around in the invisible wind._ It wasn't exactly the same as she knew it to be, but it solidified where she was.

_She was in Snikwah._

**JANUARY 20, 1985**

"Ready?"

"Ready."

"Ready."

"Ready. 

A chorus of "ready"'s followed after in different voices.

_It was time._

The party was once more huddled in the living room of Hopper's cabin, preparing themselves for the danger to come. Their trap was set, with Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin, and Max positioned around the edges of the net hanging above them with nails and hammers in their hands. Joyce and Hopper stood off to the sides, each armed with a shotgun. And at the forefront, and the only ones that would be visible through the portal, stood One with Steve and Eleven at either side. 

One stared ahead at the door with a determination that could shake worlds. _She was going to destroy Papa. She was going to get James back. She was going to put her past behind her and finally live a normal life with her family._ Human contact broke One's focus for a split second and she looked down to see Steve's fingers intertwined in hers. 

"You've got this," Steve said confidently with a curt nod of his head. One gave him a small smile back and squeezed his hand in hers. For a second, she almost wanted to put a halt to the whole plan and remain in that moment with Steve, her family, and her friends. _Later on, she would have wished she had..._

One turned her head back forward and once more studied the wooden front door. She got lost in the way that the grains weaved in between each other, like her and Steve's hands, painting pictures that disappeared the second you looked away. When she found a spot that almost resembled a heart, she set her eyes on it in an unblinking stare. 

_Darkness._

_Ash._

_Monsters._

_James._

One's body shook as she forced images of the Upside Down into her head. Old screams lodged themselves in her throat, battling to break free into the stiff cabin air. Never did she ever think she'd _purposely_ open a portal back to her nightmares. And the pain only became harder to bear as she extended her focus to another point of misery: Dr. Brenner.

Steve and Eleven watched worriedly as One's face contorted itself into a look of fear. Furrowed brows, twitching eyelids, and a scrunched up nose settled upon One's features as a whirling ball of light grew before their eyes. With each rotation, sparks shot off the portal and fizzled into the air. 

One continued to expand the portal until it was large enough for somebody to step through...that somebody being Dr. Brenner. The party gasped as sinister features of the Upside Down became noticeable through the portal. When the portal had reached its full size, One switched her focus to studying its interior. 

Initially One was disappointed. While she had managed to successfully open a portal to the Upside Down, it was difficult to discern whether it had opened to Upside Down Hawkins, or _Snikwah_ , as Dustin had called it. The scene before her was as vacant and monotonous as most of her memories of the Upside Down. 

One was about to shut the portal and try again when a rustling echoed from within the portal somewhere out of frame. The party listened silently with still breaths as the sound got closer and closer to them. Preparing themselves for whatever appeared, everyone lifted their weapons: Joyce and Hopper, their guns; Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Max, their hammers; and Steve, his precious spiked bat. Eleven prepared herself to use her powers. 

"So you've changed your mind after all," Dr. Brenner's menacing voice announced his presence as he stepped into sight. One could feel Eleven tense at her side as Dr. Brenner's good eye landed on her. "And look, you even brought Eleven. What a delight."

"No," One responded firmly. "I'm here for James. Where is he?"

"Seven is...otherwise engaged at the moment," Dr. Brenner answered with a wicked smile. The end of his sentence was punctuated by a scream that echoed through the Upside Down and filled the cabin. A pang tore through One's heart when she realized that she recognized the scream. _It was James._

"James!" One yelled, instinctively moving towards the sound of his screaming. Having anticipated this, Steve reached out and grabbed her arm to hold her back. 

"Not yet," Steve whispered. "We can't get to James until we get through Dr. Brenner." 

Irritated, One yanked her arm free of Steve's grip but she remained where she was. "What are you doing to him?" she asked Dr. Brenner, her sight still fixed on him.

"Oh he's fine...for now," Dr. Brenner assured her. Another scream rippled through the air and One once again tensed. 

Joyce had kept her eyes locked on Hopper the entire time, worried about what he might do. When she noticed Hopper raise his gun slightly and his muscles twitch, she met his eyes and gave him firm shake no from across the room. It subdued him for the time being.

"Fine," One said at last. She knew the others wouldn't like it but she was going to change the plan. She couldn't bear the echos of James' screams inside her head any longer. "I'll go with you. I'll be part of your family. _If you let James go._ "

Dr. Brenner toyed with the idea for a moment before addressing her again, "Without a fuss?" 

"Without a fuss," One repeated in agreement.

"Then we have a deal," Dr. Brenner responded, raising his arms out towards One to invite her in.

"Show me James first," One demanded. Dr. Brenner just responded with laughter.

"That's not how this works," Dr. Brenner tutted. "Perhaps we should negotiate another time." Dr. Brenner turned to walk away when One stopped him. She needed to get James out of there _now._

"No! Wait!" One shouted after him, stopping him mid-stride. She took a few steps towards him. "I'll go with you." 

A look of surprise swept around the room when the party realized that One was being serious. Hopper and Steve moved to stop her but Eleven took action first. Capitalizing on Dr. Brenner's surprise, Eleven focused all her energy on the deranged scientist and pulled him out of the portal with her powers. A drop of blood fell from her nose after both his feet crossed the threshold and he toppled to the ground.

"Now!" Mike yelled to the others, yanking the rope that sent the net plummeting down on Dr. Brenner. Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin, and Max all grabbed a corner and stretched the net taut to keep Dr. Brenner on the ground before quickly nailing their sides into the wooden floorboards. Dr. Brenner roared and struggled under his woven cage, while the rest of the party cheered and celebrated their success. 

"Hey guys..." Steve spoke up after he quickly surveilled the room, interrupting the current festivities. "Where's Sarah?" 

The celebration ceased when an ominous cackle arose from below them and the party looked down to see Dr. Brenner in a fit of crazed laughter. "Say goodbye to your friend," Dr. Brenner smiled as he turned his head towards the portal. 

The party looked up just in time to catch One running through the Upside Down before she disappeared.


	36. The Fog

**????? ??, ????**

One cautiously approached the dilapidated Byers' home, her ears alert for any signs that she wasn't alone. The grass snickered beneath her feet as she crossed into the uncertainty of the open. An assortment of pains throughout her body directed her to the exact locations of her numerous injuries as the adrenaline from the big fight and her last minute escape began to wear off. She had made it about halfway across the Byers' yard before she found herself limping. 

It took what felt like ages to finally reach the front door, but once she was inside she slammed it behind her and fell against it onto the ground. She sat there for a moment to catch her breath when a sound jolted her back to her aching feet. 

_"Jonathan, don't forget that Will is going over to Mike's after school!"_ a faint voice echoed through the living room. 

It sounded like... _Joyce?_

One immediately began searching the house for other lifeforms but quickly realized that she was alone. She must have just heard it in her head. She had been through a lot in the last twenty-four hours and was clearly sleep-deprived. After feeling content that she was safe for the time being, One collapsed onto the faded couch so that she could rest somewhere a little more comfortable than the floor. Key word being _little._

_"I'm sorry, sweetie, but I have to go to work."_

_There it was again!_ One sat upright and glanced around the room uncomfortably. Worse than the thought that she might be going crazy was the pain of hearing the voice of someone she may never see again. 

"The bad men and the monsters can't get you anymore. You're safe here."

A feeling of deja-vu shot through One's body and sent her hairs on edge. _She had heard Joyce say that before._ One tried to discern when and where she had heard those words when something else began to overtake her thoughts; a cluster of letter repeated themselves over and over in her head. She tried to shake them lose but they only got louder...

_C..._

_How had she not seen it?_

_O..._

_It had been there this whole time!_

_M..._

_She knew exactly where she was._

_I..._

_She knew exactly when she was._

_N..._

_She knew exactly what she was._

_G..._

_She was the messenger._

**JANUARY 20, 1985**

"James! James?" One called out into the restless fog that settled upon the Upside Down. Her shouts were quickly absorbed by the dense air and she worried that James couldn't hear her at all.

Several other worries began to swarm One's mind. What would she find after the fog lifted? What if James was already dead? She was quickly beginning to lose track of her surroundings, what if she got lost in the Upside Down and was stuck there permanently this time?

"One?" a familiar voice echoed weakly in front of her.

"James!" One shouted and rushed towards the source. She let her ears do the guiding since her eyes could not.

When she came to the end of the opaque veil, she found a huddled mass slumped at the base of a tree. Their dark, curly head was turned down so that One couldn't see their face, but she knew without hesitation that it was James.

"James!" One shouted again as she collapsed at his side. She wrapped her arm around his limp torso and tried to hoist him to his feet. "Come on, I'm getting you out of here."

James' body was too weak to offer her any assistance so One had to pull him off the ground herself. After she managed to get a stable grip on him, James' head lolled to the side and for the first time in a really long time she looked into his chocolate eyes.

"One?" James whispered weakly as she carried him back into the haze. His pupils dilated when they settled upon her face. 

"Yes, it's me. I'm here," One reassured him with a weak smile and watery eyes. 

The look of recognition quickly faded in James' eyes and they returned to their pained, nearly lifeless state as his head once more dropped to his chest. After a few minutes James' head lolled around again before he looked back to her and repeated, "One?" 

"Yes...I've got you..." One said slowly in confusion. He seemed like he was stuck in a loop. She had to get him back to the cabin so that they could get him help. 

One struggled beneath the physical burden of keeping James on his feet and the mental burden of keeping the portal open. She had never held a portal open for this long. She could also feel the evils of the Upside Down seeping into her pores through the fog, injecting her with thoughts of death and failure. It was all quickly becoming too much and she felt her body going as weak as James' but a call through the mist kept her going. 

"Sarah?" a familiar voice shouted, echoing strangely through the fog. 

"Steve?" One called back, sapping into the last of her energy to follow his voice.

"Sarah!" another familiar voice called alongside Steve. Now she was nearly running.

"Dad!" One shot through the edge of the gloom, and nearly sent herself and James careening to the ground. Hopper and Steve were quick to catch her and helped her to regain her balance. "Take him, I can't hold the portal open much longer." One shrugged James off onto Hopper, who threw him over his shoulder and took off for the portal with Steve and One at his heels. 

When they burst through the portal, One didn't stop until she reached the couch. She dropped her weight onto the cushions and watched through dazed eyes as the portal snapped shut before her. That had taken a lot more energy out of her than she had expected. One moved over to make space for Hopper to set James' now unconscious body next to her. 

"You've got blood on your face," Hopper pointed out to One after he had set James down. 

One's hand shot to her nose and she looked down in shock to see her fingers painted red. It had _really_ taken a lot out of her. She didn't even remember the last time her nose had bled after using her powers.

"This is James?" Eleven asked once everyone had caught their breaths. She studied the curly-headed boy curiously. It was different seeing him up close. 

"Is he dead?" Dustin asked as he cautiously raised on his tiptoes to see better over the crowd of people that swarmed around James. 

"No, but he's hurt," One answered. Her eyes remained locked on the almost indistinguishable rises and falls of James' chest. "Brenner really did a number on him." At the mention of Brenner, everyone turned to look down at the scientist, who was now suspiciously still and quiet under his net. 

"Is _he_ dead?" Dustin asked again.

Hopper walked over to check and a pained look on his face revealed the answer. "No, but he will be soon."

"Hop," Joyce threatened as she watched Hopper's hand instinctively reach for his gun. 

"I'm not going to do it in front of the kids," Hopper tried to argue, but Joyce just gave him another firm nod no. "Well then what do you suggest, _Joyce?_ " 

"I don't know, but we need to lock him up somewhere he can't hurt anybody else until we figure it out." 

"Yeah, like where?" 

"I've got an idea," One piped up and all eyes turned to look at her. Before she continued, she cast a malicious gaze down upon a sleeping Dr. Brenner. "The Lab. He can have my old room."


	37. Happily Ever...After?

**JANUARY 20, 1985**

"Here," Hopper called to Joyce after slamming the back door of his truck cab. Joyce instinctively held her hand out without looking and felt the heavy bulk of a gun placed in her grip.

"A gun?" Joyce asked, staring down at her hand in confusion. "What the hell is this for?"

"While I'm driving," Hopper began to answer as he hopped into the front seat. "you keep it pointed at him." Joyce joined him in the passenger seat and looked back at their third companion: Dr. Brenner. He was still unconscious, thanks to a heavy dosage of sedatives. Hopper had given him a bit too much in the hopes that he would never wake up again, but unfortunately he was still breathing.

"I don't think he's going to be a problem, Hop. You dosed him pretty hard." Joyce was skeptical of Hopper's plan but she still trained the gun on Dr. Brenner's sleeping body.

Hopper pulled the truck out onto the road and began their journey for the Lab. One had wanted to come with but James had started stirring right before Hopper and Joyce were about to depart. One decided it would be better to stay with him to make sure he was okay but she gave Hopper and Joyce a very detailed description on how to find her old room. It was important to her that Brenner was imprisoned in her old cell and Hopper and Joyce were more than content to fulfill her wish.

As the snow-capped scenery passed by, Joyce felt the need to say what had been bothering her from the start, "I'm glad Sarah is okay and that she found her friend. I'm glad that we got Dr. Brenner and that we're going to lock him up once and for all. But didn't that all just seem...too easy?"

Hopper stared tight-lipped out the windshield. He didn't want to admit it, but he agreed with Joyce. With everything they had been through...they were used to putting up more of a fight. What if this was all a hoax? What if that wasn't even Brenner in his back seat? "We'll take extra precautions."

~~~

Back at the cabin, the party had swarmed around a now-waking James. One sat protectively next to him on the couch while the others gathered a little too close. The only one who kept their distance was Steve, who was becoming unsure of where he fit in the picture with this new addition.

"Wh-where am I?" James asked as he slowly lifted himself from the slumped position Hopper had set him in. He looked around nervously at the swarm of strangers before him until his eyes landed on One and a weak smile filled his pale lips. "One?"

One grabbed his hand in hers and nodded in response, unable to say anything due to fears that opening her mouth would trigger the waterworks she was trying so hard to keep back. She was so relieved that he was sitting beside her, safe, whole, _alive._ This was a moment she never dreamed she'd experience, and a small part of her tried to insist it was all an illusion, but she pushed it away. One knew all too well that you had to capitalize on the happiness you had because it wouldn't last long. _And while she didn't realize it in that moment, she was right._

Steve tried to keep a strong smile from his corner in support of James's rescue, but watching James clasp hands with One made his lips falter. What if there was more to One and James than Steve realized? What if Steve was only the placeholder and now that James was back, One didn't need him anymore? _It was Nancy and Jonathan all over again!_ Steve tried to brush these worries away but they still clouded the back of his mind.

"Who are all of you...?" James asked slowly when he finally broke eye contact with One and realized that the small people were still there.

"Whoa, is that a British accent?" Mike asked. "Are you from London?"

"G'day mate, would you like some fish and chips?" Dustin said with a terrible British accent.

"That's Australian, you idiot," Lucas said and smacked Dustin's shoulder.

One had to quell her giggles before commencing with introductions, "These are my friends, Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Will, Max, and...Steve." One pointed out each person in order but her finger faltered when she got to Steve. What was Steve? Was he her boyfriend? Should she tell James?

Steve tried to quiet the pangs in his heart at being introduced as just a friend with a reminder that they hadn't exactly had the "talk" yet. In his mind, One was his girlfriend, but what was going on in hers? He was almost too scared to find out.

Steve gave James a small wave and an awkward smile and James acknowledged him with a nod of his head. James' eyes seemed to linger on Steve a little longer than the rest, giving Steve a weird feeling in his gut. Was it because he recognized Steve from the time he basically possessed him? Or was it something else...?

"Hello all, my name is James," James introduced himself to the group. "It's nice to meet you."

One moved over on the couch to accommodate her last introduction. "And this is my sister, Eleven."

"Eleven?" James' eyes immediately widened.

"She was at the Lab with us," One confirmed James' suspicions.

"What can you do?" James asked Eleven with a curiosity-laden stare.

Instead of verbally answering, Eleven decided to show him. She stood from her spot and stared at a book sitting on the kitchen table. Within moments, it began to float from its spot and then dropped with a heavy _thud_ back onto the wooden surface. Eleven hastily wiped away the spill of blood from her nose and then turned to James with a curious smile.

"Th-that's incredible!" James stammered in awe. "Very useful!" One subconsciously cocked her head at James' response. There was something about the way he said "useful" that felt strange, but she immediately brushed it away.

"Alright everyone, I think James could use some rest," One announced to the group as she began to usher them towards the door. The party reluctantly complied to stow their unanswered questions for the time being, but there was a cacophony of mutters as they were herded out. One stopped Steve at the door before he could depart. "Um, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Y-yeah," Steve answered. He tried to sound confident but his tone wavered. He nervously swept his hand through his hair before leaning over to peck One on the cheek.

"I saw that," Dustin smiled slyly after Steve caught up with him by his car. Steve had given him a ride to Hopper's for the big take-down.

Steve elected to ignore him as he hopped in the driver seat, started the engine, and cranked up the tunes. Dustin studied Steve quizzically as Steve lip synced to AC/DC. He seemed like he was trying too hard to hide something underneath the surface and Dustin felt the need to uncover it.

"What's wrong?" Dustin asked.

"Nothing, man," Steve paused his lip syncing to answer.

"Oh come on, there is too. I know that look," Dustin scoffed. Steve still refused to divulge. "It's about James, isn't it? You're worried about her and Sarah."

"I don't know what you're talking about..." Steve tried to play it off like Dustin was being crazy but he was surprised at how accurate his guess had been. Dustin gave Steve a side-eye so intense that Steve could feel it without seeing it. " _Fine,_ yeah, maybe."

"Max thinks there's something between them too," Dustin muttered.

" _What?_ "

"N-nothing," Dustin caught himself and tried to offer Steve a reassuring smile. "I'm sure you've got nothing to worry about. She's _totally_ into you. Or I'm going to lose some money..." Dustin whispered the last sentence but Steve's ears caught it.

"Are you placing bets on my relationship, Henderson?"

"...Yes?"

Steve looked back and forth between the road and Dustin before cracking a smile. "I'd be offended if I wasn't so damn proud."

"Honestly though, Steve. You like this girl, right?" Dustin asked, ditching the sarcasm for sincerity.

"Yeah, absolutely," Steve responded immediately and confidently.

"Just show her much you like her and you'll be golden."

"What, are you suddenly a girl expert or something?"

Dustin clicked his tongue and gave Steve a wink. "I learned from the best."

~~~

"You kept the red," One chuckled after the last of the party had left, nodding her head to the faded red streaks clinging onto the tips of James' curls. She took her seat back on the couch next to him, but this time she left some space. As excited as she was to see him again, it felt weird being alone with him.

"Oh, um, yeah," James' laugh rang in the air alongside hers. "I think it suits me."

"That it does," One smiled wide. "How are you doing?"

"Good, I think..." James answered. "Still just trying to come to terms with being here."

One nodded her head in understanding. She still hadn't completely come to terms with being back herself. "I'm glad you're okay," she said with a nostalgic smile.

"Me too," James returned the smile. "So, um, what's been new with you?"

"Where to even begin," One laughed. She paused for a moment to reflect on everything new that _had_ happened to her since she had last seen James: survival moding it in a cabin, escaping literal hell, nearly killing people with a monster, communicating with some lights, seeing the future... "I, um, I did it...I found my family."

"Eleven?" James asked.

"Um yeah, but like my biological family too," One explained. "My dad...and well, not my mom. Not yet."

A moment of disturbingly quiet silence passed before an ear-splitting smile erupted on James' face. "That's great!"

"What about you? What's 'new with you'?" One asked awkwardly. It was hard to broach the topic of the past with James. There was still a heavy feeling weighing on her chest about her giving up on James back in the Upside Down.

"Well..." James began. "After the demogorgons took me, they dragged me about half a mile before they dumped me in a clearing and...just left."

"Wait, _what? Why?_ " One spluttered. She was so shocked by the news that she didn't even register that James had called them "demogorgons". _If he had been in the Upside Down all this time, how did he know that term?_

"I don't know," James shrugged. "I went looking for you, but I guess I just must have gone the opposite way."

Something felt off about James' story but One neglected to question it. This was her _best friend_ she was talking to! They hadn't seen each other in _years,_ it just felt weird because their sync was off. She could trust him. _She could trust him._ "Oh, okay...yeah, I mean, I probably lost you because I was following the monsters' trail instead of yours. That makes sense." _Did it?_

"Y-yeah, probably," James said. Silence spoke next.

"I'm really sorry, by the way," One added after the silence lingered too long. A tear formed in the corner of her eye and she hastily wiped it away before James could see it, but more followed. "That I didn't find you."

"What? No! No, it's okay," James quickly responded. He scooted over on the couch and wrapped his arm around One, who was now actively crying. He made a series of shushing noises while he stroked her hair, feeling her wet tear drops collect on his skin. "It's okay."

"I thought you were dead," One sobbed.

"I did too," James whispered. He pressed his nose into her golden hair and absorbed the sweet smell. It brought back so many memories. His fingers found their way to her chin and he slowly lifted her face to meet his. Her blue, tear-stained eyes stared up into his brown ones and both became quickly aware of how close their lips were.

She almost wanted to. The thought of it felt so natural, so.... _no, she couldn't._ First off, there was still this strange feeling in the pit of her stomach that something was different about James. She needed to sort it out before she could make things anymore complicated. And second...there was Steve.

"James, I-I can't," One stammered as she pulled her head away from his puckered lips. His eyelids flickered open and for a moment she almost thought she saw disappointment reflecting in his pupils.

James sighed and dropped his head in his hands before stretching back out and looking up at the ceiling. "Is it Steve?"

"Um, yeah," One answered quietly. "I'm sorry, I thought you were--"

"Yeah, I know," James cut her off before she could finish the sentence. He tried to muster a smile but One could tell that it was difficult for him. "It's okay." Another couple moments of silence passed before James spoke again. "Do you...love him?"

One had to take a moment to think before she could answer, _if_ she could even answer. Did she love Steve? Did she love _anyone?_ Love was still fairly incomprehensible to her. Once upon a time she had told James she loved him, but did she actually? She liked to think so. She liked to think she loved Steve. "I don't know."

James gave her a look that said he knew otherwise but he didn't press it. "Well, you know...I'm always here for you." 

One nodded her head. "I know."

"I think maybe I should get that rest now."

One gathered some blankets and pillows for James and let him settle in her room. She shut the door behind her, making sure to leave it open a crack. When she could hear his soft snores escaping her room, she pressed one ocean blue eye to the gap and peaked inside. His back was faced to her but she still couldn't help but smile. 

Even with all the strange feelings that were swirling in her gut, she couldn't deny how peaceful James looked resting there. She still wasn't sure what parts of his story she could trust, but she trusted him enough to know that there _had_ to be a reason if he was lying or leaving things out. They had been through everything together, he wouldn't do anything to hurt her. 

_Right?_


	38. Trust No One

**JANUARY 21, 1985**

After that night the sleeping arrangements in the Hopper household had changed. Hopper graciously offered James his room in exchange for the couch, but One quickly realized Hopper's ulterior motives that night. When the last light had extinguished in the cabin and Hopper's snores were cutting through the silence, One slowly creaked open her door and peeked out into the dark living room.

Across the living room One could make out the partial shadowy outline of James standing in his own doorway, peering back at her. His eyes glanced down at a sleeping Hopper before quietly waving her over. One carefully tiptoed across the floorboards, intent on making it to her destination without waking the sleeping dragon on the couch.

One tried to time her footfalls with Hopper's snores and was doing remarkably well until she unknowingly stepped on a string that ran across the floor and tied to a book on the shelf to her right. One flinched as the book clattered to the floor, its booming echo cascading through the cabin.

"Nice try. Back to bed," Hopper grumbled as he turned over on the couch.

"Did you set up a _trip wire?_ " One asked incredulously before huffing and turning back towards her room. She caught James' sad glance before she shut her door and retreated to her own bed.

They weren't going to _do_ anything. One had just wanted a chance to talk to James in private. During the daytime with Hopper and Eleven at her every turn, it was hard to catch a moment alone with her newfound old friend. And especially now, with the recent awkwardness that had arisen between the two regarding Steve, it was imperative that she sort things out and get back on good footing.

Laying in bed and staring up at the ceiling, One considered another attempt to see James with a portal but ultimately determined that the whirring would be too loud and that the light might leak under her door. And who knew what other tricks Hopper might have up his sleeve. She'd just have to try again the next night, and be weary of any other traps that Hopper might set.

**JANUARY 24, 1985**

The next few nights were also a bust; Hopper was prepared for One's every move. If she wasn't so irritated that Hopper was blocking her from James with antiquated ideas about what a boy and a girl might do alone in a bedroom together, she would actually be impressed. One thought that living in the Upside Down for eight years had prepared her for anything, but apparently _nothing_ could prepare her for Hopper.

On the third night One had a bit more luck. She removed the plastic cup Hopper had balanced on top of her door before it clattered to the ground, tiptoed over not one, but _three_ of Hopper's makeshift trip wires, and masterfully avoided the stuffed bear with a squeaker in its stomach before reaching James' door. James hadn't been waiting for her in the doorframe like he had previous nights, and One presumed that he had given up.

Eyelids tightly wired shut, One clenched her teeth as she slowly turned the knob and pushed it open. A misplaced snore from Hopper sent One's heart beating even faster, but after a moment of silence and another deep breath she realized that she had successfully made it.

"James?" One whispered as she peered her head around the doorframe into Hopper's room. She strained her eyes to see through the darkness and found an alarming surprise when they finally adjusted: James was gone.

One jerked her head back in shock and just barely missed stepping on the squeaky bear behind her. Her sudden movement caused Hopper to stir on the couch and One bolted back to her room with a speed and agility she hadn't used in a long time. Her door latched just in time for Hopper to sit upright from the couch and look around wildly.

" _Stay. In. Your. Rooms,_ " Hopper barked before returning to his deep slumber.

One pressed her back against the door as she tried to catch her breath and figure out where the hell James had gotten off to. He hadn't been in the bathroom...she had spotted the open bathroom door on her brief journey to visit James. One tried to envision the layout of Hopper's room that she had seen before she had to bolt but the darkness made it difficult. She didn't recall seeing any open windows...But where else could he be?

One bit her lip as she struggled with what to do next. Should she go looking for him? Was he in trouble? Was he hurt? What if Brenner's grip on him was so strong that James had gone to rescue him? She had no idea where to look and whether she even needed to. What if he had just needed a breath of fresh air and was out for a nightly walk? It was hard to tell how much to over- or underreact. This wasn't the Upside Down.

One decided to risk it and open a portal to check Hopper's room one more time. Something within her told her to keep the portal small so she focused her energy on opening a tiny whirring circle big enough for her eye to peek through. The portal appeared in the corner of Hopper's room and thankfully the light the portal produced made it a little easier to make out the scene before her.

A sound drew One's eye to the bed and she was both concerned and relieved to see James' huddled mass stretched out under the covers. One had to take a moment to process what she was seeing. She had sworn that the room had been empty...Had she truly missed him or was he hiding something from her? She resolved to trade the boggling in her mind for sleep and decided to instead find a quiet moment tomorrow to ask him. There had to be an explanation.

~~~

The lights in the Byers household slowly shut off one-by-one until the last golden glow came from Will's room. Before heading to bed herself, Joyce peeked her head in to see what was keeping him up. When she quietly creaked open the door, she saw Will sitting in bed with his nose pressed so far into a comic book that she could only see half of his face. A warm smile swept over Joyce's features and for a moment she stood there silently, watching her son find happiness in the pages before him.

"Good book?" Joyce asked at last, startling Will from his comic. She tried to hold back a chuckle when Will nearly shot to the ceiling but she didn't succeed.

"Sorry mom, I didn't realize what time it was," Will apologized after he had gotten over the initial shock of her presence. He set his comic book aside on his nightstand as Joyce tucked him under his covers.

"My little bookworm," Joyce smiled and kissed his forehead. She turned to leave his room but stopped just before she reached the door. "Now get some sleep, okay?"

"Good night, mom," Will smiled back as Joyce flipped the light switch off and softly shut the door. The golden glow of Will's night light illuminated his sleepy features as he drifted off into the darkness. And with the darkness, came monsters.

Will would have been scared if he wasn't so used to it. There wasn't a night he could remember when he didn't have a nightmare. They varied slightly from night to night but the theme remained the same: Will was trapped in the Upside Down. Tonight's nightmare, however, felt different from the rest, although he couldn't put his finger on why...

_Black weeds choked the ground of the Upside Down and slowly snaked up Will's legs until he was unable to move. Frozen in this plant prison, the only thing Will could feel was the beating of his heart. Unidentifiable sounds continuously echoed around him and filled his soul with dread. Were they getting closer?_

_A fierce wind swarmed from behind Will, blasting his hair in his face and making it impossible to see what was coming. Will felt his mouth instantly go dry and fill with a stale taste that overwhelmed the rest of his senses. The wind continued to blow around him until it swelled before his eyes to create the outline of large monstrous being with several long limbs that burrowed into the earth; the Mind Flayer._

_Will's entire body shivered from head to toe as the overwhelming power of the Mind Flayer weighed down on him. Not even the weeds that had now wound around his chest could stop his intense shaking. Will's mouth opened in a soundless scream as one of the Mind Flayer's many limbs spiralled down upon him like a tornado and consumed him whole._

Will found his voice in the real world when he awoke to the sound of himself screaming. He shot up straight in his bed with a wide-eyed look and heavy breaths. After he had calmed his racing heart, a tingle creeping across the back of his neck compelled him to turn and look out the window and he was startled by what he saw.

Somebody was standing under the lamp post beyond his driveway, their silhouette a menacing contrast beneath the flickering, yellow glow. _Blink, bliiiiink, blink. Blink, blink, bliiiiink. Bliiiiink, blink._ Will strained his eyes to get a better look but his focus was interrupted by the creaking of his door and his mom's worried voice.

"Will, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Joyce asked from his doorway, flipping on the light switch and nearly blinding Will.

"Yeah, mom, I'm fine," Will assured her. "I'm sorry I woke you up."

"Was it another nightmare?" Joyce asked as she readjusted her robe. Will just shook his head yes. All the screaming had made his throat scratchy. "If you want I can sleep in here with you. I'll grab some pillows and blankets and sleep on the floor. It will be like a slumber party!"

Will watched Joyce's eyes light up and found it hard not to smile. "I'll be okay, mom. I promise."

Joyce gave Will a knowing smile in response before she flipped the switch off and shut the door behind her, leaving Will in the soft glow of his night light once more. Will immediately turned to look out the window at the figure but was surprised to find an empty street before him. The light of the lamp post had returned to a solid, steady glow.

Will rubbed his eyes in an attempt to rid the image from his sleepy mind. It had to have been a hallucination...he hadn't been getting a lot of sleep lately due to the nightmares and it was probably messing with his brain. Will laid his weary head back down onto his pillow and settled his body into the the blankets but there was one thing he just couldn't shake as he closed his eyes for the rest of the night...the figure had almost looked like someone he knew...their outline reminded him of...

_...James._


	39. Pack Animals

**JANUARY 25, 1985**

"I suppose I should probably give you this back." One joined James on the step outside the front door. He was staring absentmindedly into the woods, and her sudden appearance jolted him out of whatever he was daydreaming about. 

James looked up to see One holding his jacket out to him. He traced the smooth leather with his fingers before pushing it back to One. "You can keep it."

"Are you sure?" One asked, trying to keep her eagerness at bay. She loved the jacket and did want to keep it for herself but she figured the polite thing was to offer it back, as hard as it was to do so. There was a lot of sentimental value in that old dusty leather. She had been hiding it in the back of her closet for the last couple days while she tried to fight the urge within her to tell James that she had lost it in the Upside Down.

"I can't believe you kept it after all this time," James chuckled. He patted the step next to him and gestured for One to take a seat. One slowly dropped onto the stoop and cradled the jacket in her lap. 

"It's a nice jacket," One defended herself with a smile. "How are you holding up?" 

"As well as I can, I guess," James answered as he continued to stare off into the trees.

"It's a hard transition, but it gets easier," One tried to reassure him. "The most difficult part is learning to let your guard down and trust others. I still haven't mastered that..."

"You trust me, don't you?" James turned to look at One and she had trouble meeting his gaze. _Did she trust him?_ She wanted to so badly, but there was still something gnawing at her on the inside. 

"Y-yeah, of course," One stammered. She quickly tried to hide her hesitation with a smile and as far as she could tell, James seemed to accept it. An uncomfortable silence lingered in the air and provided an opportunity for One to address what had happened to James last night but she struggled with how to word it. "Did you...did you slip out last night? You weren't at your door when I tried to come talk to you."

James looked at her funny for a moment before answering, "No, sorry, I passed out early and completely forgot! I also wasn't sure you were going to try again after your dad busted us the last couple nights."

"Oh yeah, got it..." One responded. _He was lying to her._ She was positive that she had seen an empty bed! She wanted to push him to find out the truth but she was scared about what she may unearth. 

"Wanna hang out today? Maybe go for a walk?" James asked after the silence continued. 

"Actually, El and I are going over to Mike's after they get done with school," One answered. 

"Oh cool, can I come with?"

"Sorry, Mike's basement is pretty small and we barely fit as it is...maybe another time?" Now it was One's turn to lie. She needed some space from James in order to sort everything out and she was beginning to worry what kind of threat he may pose to her friends. If he was still under Brenner's control and just waiting for the opportune time to strike, One was going to make sure that the opportunity never presented itself. She wouldn't risk her new friends, even for an old one. 

"Yeah, sure," James answered. One picked up on the disappointment in his voice and part of her almost wanted to go back on her answer and invite James along, but she stayed strong. _She would sort this mess out eventually..._

~~~

"Stop hogging the Doritos, Mike," Dustin snapped as he pulled the bag from across the table towards him. The party had gathered at Mike's after school to hang out and relax for what felt like the first time in forever. They were waiting to start the series of board games they had piled up in the corner until the Hopper's arrived. 

"I'm not hogging them," Mike argued and grabbed the bag back. "You ate like half the bag!"

"Well they're mine anyways, I brought them over," Dustin pointed out. He reached for the bag once more but Mike slapped his hand over it defensively and a large crunch echoed through the basement. "Come on, man! They're going to all be broken now!" 

"Would you two _shut up?_ " Lucas snapped his fingers in front of Mike and Dustin's faces to interrupt the daggers they were staring into each other. "You guys can be such babies."

" _You can be such a baby,_ " Dustin mumbled under his breath.

"Do you think Sarah will bring James over?" Max asked after the two had finally stopped squabbling. 

"I hope not, I don't trust that dude," Dustin answered with a shiver. He began to pick through the crumbs of the broken Doritos and was met with an eye roll from Mike. 

"Why not?" Lucas scoffed. "Because you want Steve and Sarah to be together?"

Dustin ignored the second part of Lucas' question, although he couldn't deny that it was true. "He was in the Upside Down all this time, who knows what kind of shit he did just to survive. Especially as Brenner's prisoner." 

"Sarah was in the Upside Down and you trust her," Max pointed out. 

"Yeah, but she's different," Dustin added. "She's cool." 

Max and Lucas collectively rolled their eyes. "I think we should give James the benefit of the doubt," Max announced.

"You're just saying that 'cause you think he's cute," Dustin argued. 

Lucas gave Max a sharp look that she tried to shrug off but the blush on her cheeks gave her away. "Not as cute as you though," Max patted Lucas's head with an embarrassed smile. Lucas's glare softened but he still glanced at her out of the corner of his eye every couple minutes. 

"I kind of agree with Dustin," Will piped up and all eyes turned to look at him. He had been struggling with whether or not he should bring it up since he didn't even know if the figure outside his window had been James, but something in his gut told him that his suspicion was warranted. 

"Why's that, Will?" Mike asked, giving his friend the floor to explain. 

"Well..." Will began when he had to pause. He took a moment to choose his words wisely before speaking again. "It could have just been a hallucination, but...last night...last night I'm pretty sure I saw James standing under the lamp post in front of my house." 

" _What?_ " Lucas, Max, Dustin, and Mike said in unison. 

"Like spying on you?" Dustin tried to clarify. 

"I don't know..." Will answered. "He was there...and then he wasn't. He just disappeared. And something about him seems familiar, although I don't know what..." Something had felt off about James from the moment he came through the portal, but Will hadn't been around him enough to sort the feeling out and it had been bothering him ever since.

"I'm not sure about the disappearance, but the familiarity kind of makes sense in a way," Mike said. "If you think about it, Eleven, Sarah, and James all display similar behaviors; like always looking over their shoulder, never facing their back to the door, and jumping at small sounds. They even kind of all sound alike, if you listen close enough. Probably from their time in the Lab."

Will tried to shake off the uncomfortable feeling that had settled in his stomach and accept Mike's answer but the strange familiarity still lingered. He didn't have time to question it further when the clomping of shoes coming down the stairs announced the presence of One and Eleven. Will waited anxiously for James to loom into sight but he never appeared. 

"James didn't come with?" Max asked with a tinge of disappointment in her voice. Lucas once again gave her a fierce side-eye until she gave him a reassuring smile back. 

"No, he's still adjusting to being back and wasn't quite ready to leave the cabin," One answered and tried to ignore the guilty feeling that crept along her limbs. She had lied to James and now she was lying to her friends but she didn't want to worry them until she could prove that there was something to be worried about. 

Will's ears perked up at One's answer and several thoughts began to swarm through his mind. _Had James been ready to leave the cabin last night? Or was this a sign that Will had really just seen a hallucination? What the hell was going on?_

"What game are we playing first?" Eleven asked the group with a smile. 

"I vote for Monopoly!" Dustin announced.

~~~

Hopper flipped on the array of lights he had temporarily stolen from the police department and let the white glow cut through the darkness. They illuminated the room that One had once called her own at the Hawkins Laboratory, but this time it held a new occupant. Dr. Brenner's shadow stretched across the cracked floor as he stood to meet his visitor, a set of solid metal bars separating the two. 

"What will it be today, Chief?" Dr. Brenner's voice curdled the silence. "Another cheeseburger?" 

"Lucky guess," Hopper mumbled as he opened the latch to the makeshift cell he had created for his prisoner and slipped the greasy bag through. Hopper had suggested that they just leave Brenner to starve but Joyce had been adamant that they not stoop to his level. 'Geneva Convention', and all that. "Eat up, I've got more questions."

"Of course you do," Brenner laughed between bites. While Hopper had reluctantly agreed to keep Brenner fed, Joyce had never said anything about frequency and Hopper had only been bringing Brenner one meal a day. Within minutes, Brenner had scarfed down every last crumb of the burger and fries. 

"You're going to give me straight answers this time, none of that abstract riddle-me-this bullshit," Hopper demanded with a straight face. "Or that will be the last burger you'll eat for a while."

"What would you like to know?" Brenner asked, his lips curled up in a smug smile. 

"Why her?" Hopper asked without hesitation. He felt the top of his lip begin to twitch as a fierce scowl stretched across his face. This question had been haunting him ever since he learned what had happened to Sarah. "Why did you take my daughter?"

"Oh come now, Jim." Dr. Brenner paused before asking, "Can I call you Jim?" 

"No."

"You don't remember the incident?" 

" _What incident?_ " Hopper growled.

" _The_ incident, the one that occurred on October 12, 1969," Brenner said as if it were obvious.

" _What are you talking about?_ " Hopper seethed. 

"In your own backyard? Back in New York? Oh wait..." a chuckle arose from Dr. Brenner once he recalled the events that had transpired afterwards. "Of course you don't remember. Your cancer screening before she passed..." Dr. Brenner let his sentence trail off to get under Hopper's skin.

"What about it?" Hopper snapped.

"The shots you and your wife received were not to boost your immune system. You didn't even need to be checked for signs of cancer, it was just an excuse we made up to inject you with a serum that would make you forget."

"You son of a bitch!" Hopper ran towards Brenner and rattled the bars between them. His bloodshot eyes burrowed into Brenner and even in the darkness, his face glowed a bright red. "You better tell me everything right now or else--" Hopper was stopped short when a familiar howl echoed from down the hallway and brought goosebumps racing across his skin. It was accompanied by three more howls that weren't much farther behind. _Demodogs._

"Friends of yours?" Brenner asked with a smile.

Hopper ignored Brenner and cursed to himself as he ran to shut the door to One's old room and fasten the bolt. In all the craziness with reuniting with Sarah and capturing Brenner, Hopper had completely forgotten about the rest of the pack and now it was coming back to bite him in the ass. _Literally._

"You brought them here, you can send them back!" Hopper shouted at Brenner as the howls got closer. 

"You think this was _my_ doing?" Brenner scoffed. "Maybe you should ask your new little friend to help you out."

Hopper turned to look at Brenner with a confused look in his eye. "James?"

Brenner was about to answer when a series of ear-piercing scratches cascaded down the metal door and a large thud followed after. Hopper watched the door visibly shake as the demodogs threw their weight against it and he knew that it would only be a matter of minutes before it was ripped off its hinges. Hopper cocked his gun in preparation but he realized that there was only one way that he could get back to Eleven and Sarah in one piece. Hopper fumbled in his pockets for the key to the cell and shakily inserted it in the lock. 

"If you're planning on feeding me to those demon dogs I won't be enough to satisfy them," Brenner said while he watched Hopper work at the lock. "They'll get you too."

"Shut up and move over," Hopper directed Brenner as he pushed himself inside the cell just in time for the door to blow down and four demodogs to crawl into the room. He snapped the lock back in place and jumped back right before a demodog lunged at the bars. Its grotesque mouth snapped at them through the small opening it had nudged its head through but the rest of its body wouldn't fit. 

The demodogs continued to throw themselves at the cell and claw at Hopper and Brenner through the bars but thankfully the structure didn't budge. They were safe, for the time being. Once Hopper felt content that the demodogs were no longer an immediate threat, he slowly turned to look at Brenner and realized the new danger he had placed himself in. 

The shadows accentuated the scar where Brenner's eye had once been as a discomforting smile crept across his face. "Lucky me, I get a new roommate."


	40. Through a Hole in the Fence

**????? ??, ????**

One fell through the portal and scraped her elbows on rough gravel. She immediately pushed herself to her knees and swiveled her head around to take in her surroundings. She was sitting in the middle of a cul-de-sac in a quiet neighborhood dotted with split-level houses. She couldn't see any other living creatures, but she could hear the tinkling of children's laughter hiding behind the large wooden fences that separated her from whatever world she had landed in.

As she shakily found her feet, One still felt wracked by her discovery that she was the messenger. She had interacted with her past self before but when she was tapping the light bulbs to spell out "coming" it felt different, more surreal...As soon as she had fulfilled her task, she had immediately opened a portal to get out of there, and now she was...here? One had no idea where she was until she turned her head to the right and saw something she never thought she'd see again...

...The brown house.

One felt her feet leading herself towards the russet-colored building and willingly followed after. Seeing it now with her memories fully restored felt strangely alien, and somehow, she felt more uncomfortable seeing it this way than in its decrepit shape back in the Upside Down. It was like passing the same statue everyday without giving it a second glance and then one day looking upon it to find your face carved into the stone. But despite the anxious beehive swarming in her stomach, her feet kept walking until she came to the wooden fence that lined the yard. 

One pressed her bright blue eye to a hole in the fence to peer inside and found nothing but an abandoned play set and dead leaves blowing in the wind. The rusty chains that connected to the swings creaked as they swayed with the breeze and the addition of far-off children's laughter brought to mind an image of ghosts swinging in the crisp autumn air. One took a step back in disappointment with a new frown painted on her face. She had been hoping to see somebody, anybody...some sort of definitive proof that she was finally out of the Upside Down and not just imagining things.

The children's laughter continued even after the breeze blowing through the neighborhood came to a standstill so One decided to follow the heartwarming sound. She didn't have to go far before she stumbled upon a park filled with families enjoying the fresh air and felt the frown on her face grow into a small smile. A flood of relief flushed through One's body upon seeing other human beings, but she was still careful to stick to the edge for fear of trusting what her eyes saw and to avoid colliding with the multitude of children that were racing around the park. 

In her ripped-up clothing with bloody stains, One caught the attention of several concerned parents as she wandered by and she quickly zipped up James' leather jacket to try to conceal them. She didn't even know why she still had Jame's jacket after everything he had done to her, but right now the jacket was not her most pressing issue. One wasn't sure what she was looking for but something in her gut told her she would find it in this park. 

"It's troll's favorite food! Princess!" It was hard to hear over the condensed conversations echoing through the park, but this particular voice caught One's attention like a beacon and her head spun towards its source. She couldn't see the owner through the throng of racing tots, but she had an idea of who it was and why the portal had brought her here. 

One took gentle steps in the direction of where the voice had come from, careful not to upset the ground beneath her feet in case it decided to swallow her whole before she could reach the man she was looking for. 

"No daddy! No daddy, no!" A high-pitched squeal piqued One's ears and she suddenly felt her throat go dry. It was like her voice had been taken from her and she was only left with gasps of breath. 

"Roasted princess with paprika and gravy!"

The scene before her finally cleared and formed the perfect frame for One to witness a man lifting a little girl to the sky, his rich laughter intertwining with her infectious giggles and floating off into the clouds. _It was her dad and her._ One nearly stumbled backwards from the overwhelming sense of deja-vu that wracked her brain and she felt a date thrust forward form the back of her mind: _October 12, 1969._

One finally understood where, and most importantly when, she was. Her portal had brought her back in time to before Brenner had kidnapped her, back to the day when...

"Whoa, hey! You all right?" her dad asked her younger self as he set her on the ground. She was breathing heavily and her eyes were looking every which way. One felt herself struggle to keep her eyes open as she watched the scene play out before her, because her memories of this moment only included darkness. 

"What's going on?" her mother's voice chimed in. One knew what was happening. At this moment, her younger self was seeing into the Upside Down. 

"Danger. Danger. Danger," Sarah muttered nearly incoherently. 

"What's in danger? Are you in danger? Honey, what's wrong?" 

"Danger. Danger. Danger."

"She's not snapping out of it, we need to call 9-1-1!" younger Hopper said as he continued to try to shake his daughter out of the spell that had overtaken her. Hopper scooped Sarah up in his arms and together with Diane in tow, the two sped back for the house. What they didn't realize, was that they had another person following after. 

One kept her distance as she followed Hopper and Diane back to the brown house, careful to duck behind a bush or a pole whenever they looked behind them. One watched them bring Sarah into the backyard and as soon as the gate had slammed shut, One rushed over to peer through the hole.

Hopper gingerly laid Sarah down in the grass before he ran in through the sliding glass door to dial the phone. One couldn't hear him very well, but she could see him moving about through the open door. Sarah's tiny frame nearly sunk into the grass as it billowed around her unresponsive body and Diane knelt beside her to stroke her long blonde hair out of her eyes. One braced herself for what she knew was going to happen next. 

A stray wind picked up out of nowhere and tore through the backyard, creating a cyclone of leaves that sent the swings into a frenzy. It began to spin madly around Sarah's body and sent Diane stumbling back towards the house. It continued to rotate around the younger version of herself, who had awoken and begun to repeat her mantra of "danger" over and over, until it was sucked into a growing circle of light and sparks.

"OH MY GOD!" Hopper's shout was followed by the clatter of the phone ricocheting against the wall as he raced out the sliding glass door. He skidded to a halt by his terrified wife and watched as a swirling vortex of darkness hovered above his daughter like a vulture. Strange, horrific sounds began to escape the mysterious ring and sent shivers down One's spine. She never got used to those sounds.

One watched helplessly as Hopper braced himself and ran full-throttle towards Sarah and the portal. One could barely see inside it from her position, but she had her memories to fill in the blanks. Should she run over and help? Was there a way to turn this all around? It seemed hopeless at this point, Hopper had already made the phone call that Hawkins Laboratory had tapped into. Her presence was already known to them and soon they would have their hands on her. The vicious cycle would repeat, like the swirling circle of light over Sarah's head and the word that kept absentmindedly falling from her mouth. 

Hopper fell to his knees beside Sarah and wrapped his arms around her limp body. He tore her from under the looming presence of the portal, which now hosted a full-fledged view of the Upside Down in all its terrible glory. Black fog had begun to seep from the cracks in the air where the portal hummed and poured down onto the grass. The shrieks of the monsters that resided on the other side became louder, almost as if they were screaming in anger that their prey had been taken from them.

As Hopper ran back towards the house with Sarah in his grip, he tripped over a stray root and went tumbling to the ground. Once Sarah's body hit the soft earth with a thud, the portal snapped shut and the evil howls stopped ringing in their ears. Everything returned to a stillness that almost seemed surreal without the stark contrast of the portal.

Hopper crawled over to Sarah and placed his hand on her cheek. He muttered something that One couldn't quite hear, but a few moments later a sputtering sound emitted from Sarah's throat and she sat up straight in a fit of coughs. One watched with a hand pressed against her fast-beating heart as Hopper and Diane wrapped their arms around Sarah and held her tight. A collective sob of relief emanated from their huddle and One felt the need to pull back from the fence to give them their privacy. 

One's own tears began to form on her cheeks as she walked back towards the cul-de-sac she had found herself on and she hastily wiped them away. A strike of nostalgia ripped through her heart at the image of her younger self being wrapped in the loving embrace of her parents and she was suddenly reminded of her own family that she needed to get back to. _Hopper, Eleven, Steve, the party._

One turned to focus on the brown house one last time as she opened her own swirling circle of light before her and stepped through. She had made this promise before, but this time she would not break it: she would find them, or she would die trying.


	41. Game Night

**JANUARY 25, 1985**

"Whose dumb idea was it to play Monopoly in the first place?" Dustin grumbled with his head slouched against his fist in defeat as Lucas threw his money around Mike's basement. The rest of the group watched with equally disappointed faces and crossed arms while Lucas ran in circles around the table gloating.

"Hotel on Boardwalk, baby!" Lucas laughed as he fanned himself with the money he hadn't yet thrown around the room.

"I still don't understand this game," One announced with a sigh and slapped her hands against her legs.

"What game should we play next?" Mike asked the party after Lucas had calmed down and taken his seat once more.

" _Not_ Monopoly," Max answered with a roll of her eyes. She looked over to Lucas who innocently flashed his teeth and she nearly rolled her eyes again.

"We could resume our campaign," Will offered hopefully.

"I don't think we'll be able to play another game," One announced with a sullen smile. "That game went longer than I expected and Hopper will be here any minute to pick us up for dinner."

Eleven looked to One with pleading eyes but she knew that One was right. Hopper had only let them come over with the contingency that they'd be home for dinner. Ever since Hopper had discovered that One was Sarah, he had become more adamant about spending quality time together as a family. Eleven also assumed that One may want to get home to see James and she didn't want to get in the way of that, although she wasn't aware how wrong her assumption was.

One and Eleven sat around in the basement with the others, watching them play Boggle while they waited for Mrs. Wheeler to come down the stairs and announce their father's presence but it never came. Thirty minutes had gone by and One found herself looking up at the clock more and more. He had said dinner would be ready around six, and now it was six-thirty. What was the hold-up?

"Wait here," One said to Eleven. "I'll go upstairs and see if Hopper has arrived. He probably got caught up in a conversation with Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler."

Eleven nodded her head and watched One make her way up the stairs but deep down she was skeptical. In the few years she'd known Hopper, she never knew him to like small talk. In her experience, it was more likely that he was caught up at work and had forgotten to come pick them up. Eleven's suspicions were confirmed when One re-emerged on the staircase with a confused frown.

"He's not here yet, I guess," One informed the curious party.

"Maybe we can start another game while we wait?" Mike offered, waiting for a nod of approval from One and Eleven. Eleven looked to One for the answer, and after a moment of contemplation she hesitantly gave it.

"Might as well," One answered, eliciting a large smile from Eleven. "But only if it's _not_ Monopoly. I do _not_ like that game."

Everybody except Lucas vocalized their agreement and together they settled on Clue. One ended up sitting out to watch since the game only allowed for six players and there were seven of them. Eleven asked her to join her team but One was too preoccupied with worrying about why Hopper hadn't arrived yet to focus on a game and declined. She knew there was probably a reasonable explanation for why Hopper was so late, but something in the pit of her stomach kept gnawing at her.

They played through another game of Clue, a game of Life, and got part of the way through a game of Yahtzee when Mrs. Wheeler poked her head around the door leading down the basement and called out for Mike. "Mike, it's eight o'clock and you've got school tomorrow. It's time for your friends to go home. And Will, honey your mother is here!"

"But mom, we're almost done with the game!" Mike called back up the stairs but Mrs. Wheeler just shook her head no.

"Has our dad shown up yet, Mrs. Wheeler?" One asked hopefully.

"I'm afraid not, honey, but if you need I can give you and El a ride home," Mrs. Wheeler informed her with a reassuring look.

"You can ride with me," Will offered before One could answer Mrs. Wheeler. "I'm sure my mom won't mind dropping you guys off."

One felt inclined to say that they'd just wait for Hopper, or if it came to it, walk, but she had Eleven to look after and she wanted to make sure she got her home safe and sound. It was times like these where One wished she could drive. She had attempted to teach herself in the Upside Down, but none of the vehicles worked, so she had to resign to pretending. James and her had found great joy in sitting behind the wheel and pretending they were racing. James would even make funny sound effects and move around wildly in his seat whenever One took sharp turns. It was memories like these that One tried to hold onto in moments of doubt, but she still couldn't bring herself to trust the James they had found.

"Thanks Mrs. Wheeler, but I think we'll get a ride with the Byers'!" One called up the stairs after she had made her decision.

"Sounds good, dear!"

One and Eleven waved goodbye to their friends before following Will out to the car where his mom was waiting.

"Is it okay if they get a ride with us?" Will asked his mom through the rolled-down window.

"Of course!" Joyce answered, unlocking the back doors for One and Eleven to climb in. "Is Hopper working late?"

"We don't know," One answered sullenly. "He was supposed to pick us up at six but he never showed."

"I'm sure he just got caught up in something, you know how he is," Joyce tried to reassure them as she pulled out of the Wheeler's driveway and began the drive to Hopper's cabin.

One tried to take Joyce's words to heart as she silently watched out the window but once they turned onto their street and the cabin loomed into sight, her worries tripled. All the lights were off in the cabin and Hopper's truck was nowhere to be seen.

"If you girls want you can come back to my house until Hopper gets home," Joyce offered as she parked the car.

"It's okay," One answered for the both of them. "We have a key and I'm sure James is inside waiting for us."

"Are you sure? James can come too. I've got some leftovers if you guys are hungry."

One felt her stomach rumble but she knew that nothing would sit right in her stomach if she ate with all her anxiety. "We're sure."

"Well, give me a call if you need anything, okay?" Joyce said with a concerned look on her face. With everything they had been through together, she considered One and Eleven to be her children too.

"Will do, thanks Mrs. Byers!" One said as she scrambled out of the car and shut the door behind her. One and Eleven stood in the driveway to wave goodbye to Joyce and Will before heading for the front door of the cabin.

"Where do you think Hopper is?" Eleven asked One with a tinge of worry in her voice. She had thought that maybe Joyce was right, and Hopper was caught up at work, but now she wasn't so sure.

"I don't know..." One's voice trailed off when she noticed something about the front door and immediately held out an arm to stop Eleven before she went to investigate. The door was creaked open a couple inches and an inky darkness spilled out from the other side. One gave Eleven a stern look that indicated to stay where she was before she slowly pushed the door open and peered inside.

It was impossible to make out anything in the darkness so One built up her bravery before thrusting her arm around the door and feeling for the light switch on the other side. It took a few slaps to find it, but eventually a warm light spread through the space and quelled some of the anxiety building in One's throat. Upon a cursory glance everything looked fine, but One was still hesitant to let Eleven enter before she ensured that everything was safe.

"James?" One's voice echoed around the cabin as she called out. Stray bolts of electricity began to dart between her fingertips as she waited for a response. "Hopper?"

One nearly shot to the ceiling when Eleven barreled in behind her, having become impatient waiting outside. Eleven pushed past One and began to look through the rooms, but found an empty space behind every door. She looked to One with a shrug and a shake of her head and One felt her face drop. Not only was Hopper missing, but now James was too? What was going on?

One ran her fingers through her hair as her eyes combed the cabin. They fell to the kitchen table where she found a newspaper sitting open to an article with a headline that read: "Hawkins Laboratory Still Sits Vacant; What Does the City Plan to do with the Space?" and something clicked. Hopper had made a passing comment about stopping at the Lab before he dropped One and Eleven off at the Wheeler's, but if he was still there it could only mean that something had gone wrong.

One rushed over to the phone and began pounding numbers with her finger. As she pressed the phone to her ear, Eleven gave her a confused look. "I think I know where Hopper is, but we're going to need a ride."

~~~

Hours later, the demodogs were still pacing outside the cage. They had stopped snapping and clawing through the bars, but their low growls still rung in the stale air. Hopper and Brenner remained pressed against the back wall, unsure of how they were ever going to get out of their current situation when a new sound entered their ears.

Footsteps echoed outside the room from down the hallway, not only catching the attention of Brenner and Hopper, but the demodogs as well. Their growls turned into whimpers and Hopper watched curiously as their legs trembled beneath their bony bodies. With each footstep, the demodogs became more and more skittish until one-by-one they bolted out of the room, leaving Hopper and Brenner alone, if only momentarily.

Hopper waited with bated breath to see who or _what_ would emerge on the other side of the door. He wanted to hope it was a someone coming to save him, but the way the demodogs responded it seemed more likely that he was about to be in an even worse predicament than before. Before their mystery visitor could reveal themselves, Brenner dropped to the floor covering his ears and screaming in pain. Hopper was so distracted by Brenner's contorted body rolling around on the ground that he didn't see who entered the room until after they spoke.

"Would you look at that, the spider got caught in his own web."

Hopper's face turned stark white as he met the eyes of the new person in the room. "James?"


End file.
